Trotting on to 2024 - Goals, Progress and More (Jan-Feb)

[exvet]

Thank you guys. It's finally starting to really sink in. I tend to be more of a robot in terms of getting things done that have to be done and then the aftermath hits, often when it's not expected. Still I am so grateful for the bonds I've shared with my 4-legged family. I came home from work yesterday to a down pour with hail and attempted to load the horses so I could head to Phoenix before the 'real' weather hit. The horses were flying around trying to get away from the hail but thankfully because I have had them so long and trained them, loading went rather well and quickly especially when they each realized the trailer was a more hospitable place than their turn out. The trip went smoothly and now waiting for the farrier before heading to the show grounds. I don't think I could get so much done in such little time if my beasts, dogs and horses, weren't so closely bonded. The hurt is worth having those kind of relationships.

[khall]

Exvet I’m so sorry for your loss of your JRT. 18 years is a very long life. Bless you for your service for helping other owners with their difficult decisions in their pet’s end of life. We’ve all had to make those tough decisions and it sucks but having a vet who cares sure does help make it a bit easier.

My news is Joplin is just rocking!! Flying changes seem like they will be fairly easy for her to understand. Got L to R this week and I was worried that would be more difficult. Canter half pass is great. Her work seems to be falling into place. Looking forward to Cedar next week.

Gaila is doing well responding to smz s. She’s past 315 days now. Not really progressing now udder wise. Which is good. Cook that foal longer.

Other big news is Rip. His last scope on apoquel was the best it’s been in ages. Next one is in 3 months interested to see if there is even more improvement. If so just wow

Hopefully the weather won’t be too harsh. We are having spring like weather right now

[Moutaineer]

Potters had his brains back in his head today and I had a very nice ride. We've been playing around with collecting the trot to the point of passage and then letting him out to a more medium feel.

I suspect his right hock is bothering him. Any resistances seem to come to the fore when you start to really ask him to take his weight on it in a lateral movement, so crossing under with the right hind and then weight bearing on it. We started a course of Adequan yesterday and will see if that's enough or if it needs to be injected. He's due an Osphos shot in about a month and that will certainly make it feel better. I don't want to bring that forward though as I like to get a decent stretch of time between them.

The mud is epic here. A combination of melting snow and persistent rain has turned our turnouts into swamps. My barn mates are amazed at how filthy Potters manages to get every day. I'm having to factor extra hosing off and grooming time into my barn time. And it's only just February. A very strange winter.

[Chisamba]

Mud is epic here too!!!

We have been doing counter canter trot counter canter on the circle. It's one of those aha exercises in practicing obedience improving balance and riding back to front. It's paying dividends.

Good luck at the show exvet!

Sounds like lovely rides khall!!

Moutaineer, if Potters is anything like me, he feels stiffness somewhere just waking up. Not even just during hard work. Lol

[Aleuronx]

Things are as wild as I expected. One business trip down, international one next. Kora will get a mid-winter break while I am away, which isn't a bad thing. A few weeks back I did back to back lessons with trainer who came up from Florida. On the coldest weekend we've had yet this winter. We still did good work, the most expressive flying changes yet and started talking about the prep for canter zig-zag so working the half-pass sitting solid and square and then riding out straight 2 strides to counter flexion. We are ticking along well for winter training.

Mountaineer, having to traverse muddy turnouts can make them sore or prompt soreness. We were having the same issues at the barn until it froze, some of the oldsters getting a bit creaky.

I splurged and paid for a winter photo shoot when we had a nice amount of fluffy powder type storm come through. I won't bombard you with them all but a few. I was stunned with how good they came out, the sunset didn't hurt either.

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[Tanga]

Gorgeous shots, Aleuronx. Snow in the right way is so good for training.

Mud is getting there, here, too. Nothing can be close to as bad as last year. Mine are used to galloping up and down hills in foot deep mud in the pasture, so I don't really worry about conditioning. Since we lost the local shows I used to go to Jan/Feb/March, I'm not worrying much about any of it.

[Moutaineer]

Aleuronx, Yes, I do worry about that. I'm not sure which is worse, liquid mud or lumpy frozen mud.

Its very unusual for us to get this muddy and this early. A couple of heavy snowstorms followed by an early warm spell.

Next stop, scratches, I guess.

[StraightForward]

Love the pics, especially the sunset!

I did something to tweak my back yesterday, which is annoying because my instructor is arranging a trip to town. I rode for a few minutes last night to try the jumping saddle (T said no to cantering in the saddle, so at least I didn't feel like I need to try jumping) and it was pretty uncomfortable. A little better this morning, so I might just stay out of the saddle for a couple days to avoid aggravating it.

Yes to the mud here too. Horses are grouchy from not getting out, and it doesn't look like it's going to freeze or dry up any time soon. Boo. We usually get some nice outdoor riding time in February, but it won't be this week.

[mari]

Aleuronx such lovely photos!
Exvet - you're so right that the hurt is worth the relationships we have with them.

We're working on trot HP and flying changes. For the trot HP, he doesn't have access to a lot of sideways jump, if that makes sense. He needs a bit of forward oomph first, and then the hindquarters can be positioned. So we've been working on travers in collected trot, forward into a bit more medium in travers, and back. Maintaining the position is not going so well in these transitions, so it's a work in progress.

Flying changes are beautiful and clean at the moment. But oh my word he will just throw them in anywhere, anytime. When I ask, they happen promptly, which is an improvement. But yesterday he just would.not.stay on one leg. Bounce bounce bounce, change change change. Not on a particular leg, both legs, all the time. On the straight, on a circle To the inside, to the outside. Absolutely not interested in my leg position.

I saw this little clip of a Carl Hester change exercise that can also help to smooth over the anticipation a bit, which I will try with my instructor.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrsEO8XmTP0

[blob]

Exvet, I am so sorry for your loss. Sounds like Linus had a long and wonderful life with you, but I know it does not make the loss any easier.
Aleu, the pics are beautiful! I'm glad you got some beautiful images between all the mud.
Mari, sounds like the change work is really coming along even if he is change happy right now! Maybe you should take that momentum into teaching him tempis!
Khall, glad to hear the girls are both doing well and that Rip's also had a great scope. Apoquel has been a real difference maker for MM's allergies as well

We are also dealing with mud--but not the snow kind, just the rainy kind.

I put a real spur on RP over the weekend (instead of the tiny knubs i've used in the past with him) because I felt like I need something to help with the lateral work. I was hoping the spur could create some distinction between my outside leg sending forward and my inside leg asking for over. Though, I thought he might jump out of his skin. Surprisingly, he was not especially reactive to the spur, I would have anticipated it making him a lot hotter than it did. But it did help with the lateral work and we got some nice SI and LYs with a steeper angle than we've had in the past. I was hoping/thinking i would have to only use it a few times and then he would be hot off that aid. But it didn't play out like that. Instead, I did have to remind him every few strides with a touch of it while doing LYs and SI. I don't want us getting dependent on it, so I will probably use them for a few rides in a row to help confirm the correct movement and build some muscle memory before taking them off again.

I am tentatively planning for a show end of the month with him. Entries are due this weekend, so I'll wait until the very end to decide.

[Moutaineer]

So apparently, I decided to have a full-blown asthma attack in the barn this morning instead of my scheduled ride. More than a bit scary to be honest and I'm still feeling rather wonky.

However, as I was sitting recovering, Potters was looking fabulous for Justin. I was very happy with his attitude and how he was moving, especially bearing in mind that he'd had the weekend off and it was really cold and muddy and sleeting for turnout this morning. Two doses of Adequan and he's already so much more flexible and happy through his hocks. We are so lucky to have access to such great therapeutic options for our horses nowadays. I look back on horses I owned 30 years ago and think "if only..."

They got to do a little work on the piaffe under saddle which was harmoniously done and pretty to see. I think we got some video, if we did, I will share it when I get access to it.

Sounds like we are all managing to slog our way through winter an get some stuff done. Good for us!

[zevida]

Aleuronx such lovely photos!
Exvet - you're so right that the hurt is worth the relationships we have with them.

We're working on trot HP and flying changes. For the trot HP, he doesn't have access to a lot of sideways jump, if that makes sense. He needs a bit of forward oomph first, and then the hindquarters can be positioned. So we've been working on travers in collected trot, forward into a bit more medium in travers, and back. Maintaining the position is not going so well in these transitions, so it's a work in progress.

Flying changes are beautiful and clean at the moment. But oh my word he will just throw them in anywhere, anytime. When I ask, they happen promptly, which is an improvement. But yesterday he just would.not.stay on one leg. Bounce bounce bounce, change change change. Not on a particular leg, both legs, all the time. On the straight, on a circle To the inside, to the outside. Absolutely not interested in my leg position.

I saw this little clip of a Carl Hester change exercise that can also help to smooth over the anticipation a bit, which I will try with my instructor.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrsEO8XmTP0

So relatable. We are working on tempis with my guy and I am also getting changes all the time when I don’t want them. I swear I’m not changing my leg position but if I’m not firmly and clearly asking for the current lead with my legs and seat I risk a change.

We have been working on suppleness and practicing shoulder in to haunches in in canter. Going well! Well, today the trainer had me do shoulder in then straight then haunches in. Well, I got shoulder in then my straightening aids were too much like change aids so we just kept changing. Sigh.

Then trying to end the lesson on a nice, clean, expressive single change on the diagonal also proved impossible. Changes before I ask or I’m now not clear and get no change. Sigh. I think flying change hell is in perpetuity.

[mari]

So relatable. We are working on tempis with my guy and I am also getting changes all the time when I don’t want them. I swear I’m not changing my leg position but if I’m not firmly and clearly asking for the current lead with my legs and seat I risk a change.

We have been working on suppleness and practicing shoulder in to haunches in in canter. Going well! Well, today the trainer had me do shoulder in then straight then haunches in. Well, I got shoulder in then my straightening aids were too much like change aids so we just kept changing. Sigh.

Then trying to end the lesson on a nice, clean, expressive single change on the diagonal also proved impossible. Changes before I ask or I’m now not clear and get no change. Sigh. I think flying change hell is in perpetuity.

Really is a struggle. Took me years to get to a single clean one though, and I don't think we'll get to a high enough level where we will need to show tempis. Although I would like to try.

If he really loses his brain, one thing I found that works is little loops and leg yields in the canter. So on the long side, leg in for 2-3 strides, then push back to the wall, trying to keep him straight. And repeat about 2 or 3 times down each long side. It works to get his attention back on my actual leg position, and not leg pressure. The pressure is for moving his body around, the position indicates the lead.

Then also little loops on the long side in canter, just over a metre in. Really focus on the bending on the loops, so he has to listen to how I want to position his body with a stride of two of counterbend, while staying on the correct lead.

If he flings himself around, we halt firmly and calmly, and we strike off again and just continue the exercise.

[zevida]

Just watched the Carl Hester video and I like that exercise! I may try it on my own this weekend.

Sometimes I find that whatever I do with my legs is a change. Medium canter? Change! Straight canter? Change! Flex inside in counter canter? Change!


We do work on things like leg, yield a few strides in and a few strides out at the canter, while bending and counter bending to really get him supple, and that he can use his body no matter which direction we’re going in which leg we’re on without throwing a change. He actually does pretty well with that, sometimes I think the quieter we’re getting or the quieter thing we’re asking him to do the harder it is it’s too easy to overthink it and override it or underride it because you are overthinking it. Tell me go across the diagonal and ride 5 3 Tempe and this is a good chance that’ll happen , because I have to pull my shit together and really ride balls to the wall.

[StraightForward]

I've had a couple good rides on T lately. This morning I was able to haul out and had the big indoor to myself, so we could work on CC. It continues to be a challenge, but getting better. I'm riding with a back brace and I think it's giving me a good reminder to not slip to the left, which is a habit I've been fighting for a few years. Right now the focus with T is getting her to bring her neck down and relax a bit through the base of the neck to improve the bend. She used to be hollow left, but now right bend feels pretty good and consistent, and left feels like she is stuck in some of her body parts. Towards the end of the ride today I experimented with overbending on the circle while stretching down in trot, and she was able to pick up canter from there without bracing. Hoping the arena might be drained enough to ride on Saturday, and looking forward to lessons Sunday-Tuesday.

One thing that is interesting - T has always had a bit of an abnormality towards the lower/back rib area on her left side. Like she looks a bit square where the ribs come together. I've asked the vet about it before and he palpated it and pronounced it to not be a problem. It seemed a little bigger a few days ago, so I just put my hands on it Masterson-style and she was really responsive, almost went to sleep, lots of blinking, licking and chewing over several minutes. So I decided to do a taping on it, and when I took the tape off today, it seemed to be almost gone. It will be interesting to see if it comes back, but we have a vet appt. the 19th, and one of the things I plan to ask about is doing some imaging to see if we can tell more about what is going on. It certainly seems like it could be affecting her ability to move her ribcage in both directions.

[heddylamar]

Maia had body work the other day, and she noticed the same tension I've been seeing since the lameness in December. And there was a bit of a muscle knot on the inside of her upper back leg (gracilis). We got that all worked out, and I worked on it a bit more the next day while we waited our turn with the vet for spring vaccines. Unfortunately, I've been too busy between work and physical therapy to get back out and ride. Hopefully tomorrow.

[exvet]

We've had a lot of snow requiring that the horses remain inside their stalls. Three horses pent up with energy to burn, not good. We closed work early today due to the road conditions. I came home and tended to the dogs and then the horses. I let each one out in between snow squalls to roll and blast around a bit before putting them back inside for the remainder of the day/night. It's clear that Junior and Brandon both think snow is FUN. Me, not so much, just hoping I can get them worked even if it's just in hand this over the next 4 days. Junior - no coughing after rolling, running around bucking like an idiot - Yay!

[mari]

We've had a lot of snow requiring that the horses remain inside their stalls. Three horses pent up with energy to burn, not good. We closed work early today due to the road conditions. I came home and tended to the dogs and then the horses. I let each one out in between snow squalls to roll and blast around a bit before putting them back inside for the remainder of the day/night. It's clear that Junior and Brandon both think snow is FUN. Me, not so much, just hoping I can get them worked even if it's just in hand this over the next 4 days. Junior - no coughing after rolling, running around bucking like an idiot - Yay!

I don't know how you guys manage with snow My body is so adapted to year-round sunshine that it seems like alien landscape to me.

[exvet]

We've had a lot of snow requiring that the horses remain inside their stalls. Three horses pent up with energy to burn, not good. We closed work early today due to the road conditions. I came home and tended to the dogs and then the horses. I let each one out in between snow squalls to roll and blast around a bit before putting them back inside for the remainder of the day/night. It's clear that Junior and Brandon both think snow is FUN. Me, not so much, just hoping I can get them worked even if it's just in hand this over the next 4 days. Junior - no coughing after rolling, running around bucking like an idiot - Yay!

I don't know how you guys manage with snow My body is so adapted to year-round sunshine that it seems like alien landscape to me.

I have lived in the desert for 25 years and except for the very occasional and odd snow in the northern part of the greater Phoenix area haven't really had to deal with it for a LONG time. I grew up working on my families' various dairies/horse farms in a part of the country that got all four seasons which meant lots of snow in the winter; so, I learned to drive in all sorts of weather. After 25 years in a place that stays relatively warm and dry for most of the year I was ready to move to a part of the desert that showed more of a change in weather between the seasons. I was warned I wouldn't be able to ride as much once I built a place and took a job up here in the higher elevations but truth be told that hasn't really been an accurate prediction as least not so far. It's a pain in many ways but not long lasting. This snow should be gone by Monday. Having lived and practice in Ohio (as a large animal vet) and Missouri (KC area) I became a fan of 4 wheel drive, full insulated coveralls, heated buckets, winter riding wear et al. Fortunately I hung on to most of it and it all still fits (hallelujah) so we're good. I should reiterate, I LOVE my 4 x 4 Dodge truck.

[Moutaineer]

Yup. Good AWD/4WD is just essential in the mountains!

Another heavy, wet snow day here today. Its been unrelenting this week. Not much riding has happened. Oh well. Its not a bad thing for them to have a bit of down time.

Me on the other hand... I need to stop celebrating the survival of yet another hair-raising zero visibility on slick highway drive by eating all the things.

[StraightForward]

I've had two good lessons so far. Our outdoor is stubbornly refusing to drain, though I did warmup out there yesterday. Nice to have a horse that is a good mud bogger, and I think it actually makes her listen a little more when I ask for balance in the corners. Did the lesson in the indoor and got an idea for working on CC a little in the small space. Sometimes I forget that we can do 10m canter circles now, so the idea was just to canter onto the CL, then back to the wall and continue on. This morning it worked to haul out and have lots more space, so we did some exercises with SI on one long side, then CSI on the other long side, and HI on the short ends. Then we worked that into some SI in canter, riding off the rail a couple strides and LY back. This arena is wide, so we took advantage of that by taking two corners in CC, then straightening on the CL, riding a 10m circle on true lead, lengthening a touch, and then back for another 10m circle, and then back to CC for two more corners. At the end she asked me to bring her back a little with my seat and said T really hinged her pelvis and stepped way under, so we had a little celebration and called it a day. One more lesson tomorrow, and I'm hoping to get some outdoor riding the rest of the week.

Saturday afternoon I'll be getting on the road to Southern Colorado to do a 5-day hoof care workshop with Daisy Bicking and Maggie Selzer from Epona. It will cover glue-on composite shoes and radiographs as well as trimming, so I'm really looking forward to learning a lot.

[blob]

Riding is such a rollercoaster, ha.

After 2 weeks of really, really good canter work with RP, I went ahead and signed up for a show end of Feb. Almost as soon as the entries were sent, I had 3 really bad canter days in a row with him. 2 under saddle and one on the lunge. Then we got 3 days of rain and are probably looking at atleast another day or 2 before anything is dry enough for anything other than walking around. So...who knows what the status will be when i can ride again and who knows if we will in fact have our canter in order for the show.

At least those last few really bad days, I do know what needed to be fixed (his left shoulder falling out both directions), I just couldn't fix it.

[exvet]

Riding is such a rollercoaster, ha.

After 2 weeks of really, really good canter work with RP, I went ahead and signed up for a show end of Feb. Almost as soon as the entries were sent, I had 3 really bad canter days in a row with him. 2 under saddle and one on the lunge. Then we got 3 days of rain and are probably looking at atleast another day or 2 before anything is dry enough for anything other than walking around. So...who knows what the status will be when i can ride again and who knows if we will in fact have our canter in order for the show.

At least those last few really bad days, I do know what needed to be fixed (his left shoulder falling out both directions), I just couldn't fix it.

Ah, I know this post and that carnival ride well. We've been dealing with snow and now mud here; but, I did get to start Junior back under saddle on Sunday and rode him yesterday. I decided to wait and ride Brandon yesterday, too much mud to risk it on Sunday. Both are doing well but it's always the three steps forward, two steps back dance. Brandon's 'did well' was mostly due to good behavior. I rode him down to the equestrian center to use the covered arena and saw the barn manager. Her comment, "So, you must have the frisky one!" I told her, "I suppose so since he hasn't been ridden for one week." Nope, he was very well behaved and stayed on my seat this time; so, his canter wasn't horrible. He likes to avoid using his hind legs properly. Doesn't seem to be one over the other whichever direction we're going he tried to avoid getting his inside hind honestly engaged.

[StraightForward]

Blob, I hope you can get RP on track. It is so frustrating making progress and then regressing again!

ExVet, nice the Brandon was a good boy after the week off. Hope the mud subsides soon.

I had a super lesson this morning. We did some W/H/W to get the halts square, with an occasional step of RB. T got really round and engaged. We also worked on a couple steps HP then LY back to the wall on one long side, and then forward and back in trot on the next long side, working up to a few half steps at E. I also need to focus more on the simple changes, so we finished with some canter work and some C/W attempts. T put together the best right lead canter of her life after a bit of that, really connected and through. We were all so happy we quit there and my instructor said "She is going to be a force to be reckoned with!" So that made my day. Now she gets a day off and then we'll hopefully have a new jumping saddle to test out on Thursday or Friday. Looking forward to our next set of lessons the first week in March. Long view towards starting changes at the end of summer. Fingers crossed!

[Moutaineer]

Super good SF! That sounds so encouraging.

I had a really good lesson this morning, too. Potters really needs that extra level of "knowing you are up there." Now I'm convinced, I'm learning to ride with a lot more contact and connection than I'm used to, not just in the hand, but in the seat and legs also. It really helps with the clarity of the aids and he's happy to go "yes, ma'am." I must have bbeen driving him up the wall with my previous wooliness.

It's funny, because most trainers will tell you that Arab blood requires a light hand and a light seat with your thighs off and your leg off. Not this one. I'm sitting up there going "well this doesn't exactly equate with "reins of silken threads,"" and he's all "Oh Thank God she's finally taking responsibility."

My abs are feeling it this afternoon.

[Chisamba]

My Flei has a roach back and high wither and is very happy to let me know if he is uncomfortable with a buck. So I decide I need to get him orefessionslly fit. So said professional puts a saddle on him and he bucks, so I say, nope it's uncomfortable. So said professional says he needs a back xray, is in pain what did the vet say, blah blah. Now when I bought him.my vet, who is also an acupuncture pro and I trust gave him the thorough exam. Including some pretty dramatic palpating and pressing. Gave me the go ahead to work him. So he is a big forward moving stiff ol chunk of horse with dramatically different muscling in his shoulders. So he goes big and forward unless his saddle slips and touches his withers. He also dislikes a half pad. I know this because he tells me. Fitter insisted he needs a half pad, insists saddle fits, and Flei says no, so she says x-rays, pain, bad back . We put a different saddle on and he goes flying around in a dramatic road trot without and sign off problem. Now I say, oh so he is in pain and unsound is he. And bunt admits there is no sign of unsoundness or pain. Wow, so it was what I'm paying you good money for, the fit?

Why is it so impossible to find a decent saddle fitter? But what really pissed me off is that bystanders started saying things like " oh I know you don't want to spend money on him but maybe you should get the vet". To which I replied that I had never ever not called the vet when needed to save money. She said oh that not what I meant. So I replied that what you said.

So I spent 575v
dollars to have his back measured and have her tug and push and draw lines and do absolutely nothing to fit the horse except say he needed a half pad.

I don't believe in half pads. I prefer the saddle to be fit without one. So she is fitting Emma. My school horse. She had already fit the saddle before. It just needs a bit of flocking. She says you need to buy this half pad. I tell her I have every half pad in existence, no I want the saddle fit. I teach a lesson and come back. One of my students who rides her is clutching a half pad. What that I ask. I'll pay half of the pad, said student says. ( as if it's the fucking money) why? I ask. Fitter looks at me. Oh she said I'm doing what the rider wanted. I say how about doing what the owner of the horse asked you to do. No half oads. So she flocks the saddle. She still wants the half pad. I go to my drawer, pull out the half pad and say you mean one like this? I say to ride if you want to buy a pad but a pad but I'm not buying something I already

If the vet does not think the horse needs x-rays then the saddle fitter can eff off. If I airway own a pad, I don't need to buy a new one.

Do people really do stuff like that. Am I being stingy? I have never ever not called the vet to save money. I don't care if the horse is a rescue or my most expensive horse, they get the same vet care if needed.

This judgy Ness. I even had a vet refuse to do what I asked because she thought the horse was a rescue and didn't deserve saving. Needless to say that vet will never darken my door again but if you are a orefessionslly do your job if it's a million dollar horse or a rescue

Judges are the same, by the way. Unfortunately the moment they know I work with resc


ues the score comes down before I even ride in the ring

[exvet]

Chisamba I hear you. I'm a vet and I have trainer after trainer tell me I need to scope this one for this or do x-rays on that one for that. They still look down their nose at me when I tell them why I don't need to..................so I have gone ahead at their badgering and poured the money out for diagnostics only to confirm that all is fine, drives me nuts. I know in my gut when things aren't right. I have the education; but, they all look for excuses instead of teaching me how to ride my horse. It's like I must pay to dispel every possible excuse before they'll put effort and PATIENCE into teaching me how to help talk to my horse or I would even be happy with them just telling me what they see I'll adjust to create the better picture if they can't tell me how to do it..............geesh. I do value my farrier's opinion because he knows his stuff and he doesn't get anything out of telling me he's seeing this or that. Heck he even tries to talk me out of doing things that will cost me more (but does it if I insist like put aluminum shoes on Junior's back feet to give him more traction on the pavement). Saddle fitters, well, that's a whole nuther thing. I really just depend on them to bring tons of saddles to try. I can tell if the horse and I like it or not or if it needs more flocking/adjustments or if it's just not going to work...............LOL, it's why I'm not the most popular in the circles I tend to run in

[Moutaineer]

We have a working student like that at the moment who thinks she is God's Gift to horsemanship and we are all a bunch of dumb middle-aged women. She's already lectured me about what I should be doing with Potters about his hives (Did I know horses could be allergic to certain food stuffs and environmental triggers? Have I heard of allergy testing? Um, yeah... I do have half an idea of what I'm doing) and was busy lecturing down to my very knowledgeable and capable 81 year old barn mate, who has horses older than she is, about nutrition the other day.

She means well, but by golly, she's bad at reading the room. Oh, and she's a rabid barefoot trimmer person too.

[Chisamba]

We did get a blast of snow, 15 inches. It was lovely to look at but not so lovely to work thorough.

I got behind on my riding. I have a clinic this Saturday and I leave for Ireland next week to see my failing mother

[StraightForward]

Jingles for your mom, Chisamba. And ugh, 15 inches of snow does not sound appealing at the moment. Just when our outdoor arena drained, it started raining again.

The Pessoa jumping saddle I impulse-bought arrived yesterday. Popped the XW gullet in and am pleasantly surprised at how well it worked. T seemed happy, and the balance is better for me than in my Black Country Quantum. We haven't jumped in a few months, but I set up a small jump in the middle of the arena and we had fun popping back and forth over it. Bonus that T can now turn down CL in canter both directions.

Tomorrow an Aviar rep is coming out with some demo saddles. Our current saddle is working pretty well, so I'll have to love it to drop that kind of cash. It should be interesting though; I've actually never had access to a bunch of saddles to try out at once. Tomorrow afternoon I head to CO for the hoof workshop, so T will get a solid week off.

[Flight]

Aleuronx, those photos are beautiful!!
We are still summer with some hot afternoons. We've finally moved. I think I did over 20 moves with the horse float, as we had about 4 tonne of split wood and 30 bales of hay and lots of outside stuff, like my working equitation equipment.

The most stressful was that bloody new horse of mine. I dont think I mentioned it, but a few weeks ago I'd took him on his first float (trailer) ride to a friends place and when I was leaving, he jumped over the chest bar and got stuck. It was horrible. I have removable chest bars but not when they are under load (I now have them so you can undo from the outside!) No local vets available for sedation, anyway long story short he bent the bar enough that it sprung out and then he just stood there. My nerves couldn't take driving him home, so I led him 8km/5miles home. Luckily he leads ok, because there were cars/trucks/garbage trucks/dogs/guinea fowl you name it on the way.
So, I got a transporter to move him in an angle load and he would just back out when she was closing the divider. Not rush out, just didn't want to be trapped on there, I guess. Another long story short, on the last attempt before I was about to give up, we managed to close him in and then once he realised he cant go backwards he was right. He actually travelled better than Ding! I cannot describe the relief when he made it here. I would have had to walk him 30km/18mi !
So now is the unpacking and sorting. The place is great, it just needs tidying and maintenance and the stables finished off.

IMG_9459.JPG (113.18 KiB) Viewed 1720 times

[Moutaineer]

That looks idyllic, Flight. I'm glad you all finally made it there in one piece! I have some serious grass envy going on looking at that...

Chisamba, I hope you have a good visit with your mother. When my father was failing, I would in some ways dread going to see him because I didn't know what to expect and how much change there would have been from the last visit. But I was always glad I'd made the trip and spent time with him.

Rainy/snowy/generally miserable weather here. Good for trade I guess as the ski resorts have been hammered, however I will enjoy not white-knuckling it over a mountain pass to get to the barn once spring comes.

But another very nice ride on Potters this morning. Which I wasn't entirely expecting as he's been off his anti-inflammatories for a few days in preparation for his Osphos shots next week. I'm sure he's helped by the fact that he's in the middle of a course of Adequan, but he felt really nice and soft and forward and focused, and we had some mighty fine canter work.

The winter blues have been eased somewhat this year by sharing with such a nice group of supportive, hard-working, cheerful barn mates and trainers. It sure makes the difference to enjoy the people and horses you are around every day.

[exvet]

Wow, Flight, glad y'all are alright; but, I've had a similar experience with a friend's pony. Nerve wracking to say the least. Chisamba I hope your travels are safe and the visit all that you both need it to be.

Junior is coming along well. We just need to build back his stamina. I had a lesson on Brandon this morning and it went much like my last few rides on him, frustrating. Since I've been working on getting him stronger and weaning him off the estrone, his bully behavior has come out with a capital "B". He's very demonstrative when he gets pissed and definitely thinks that he should dictate the ride. Fortunately the instructor I'm riding with up here has a horse with a very similar personality so she's been able to help me sort through some of his BS vs. me either getting in his way or not properly balancing him. She also gave me the thumbs up to shoot for 2nd level with him at the show coming up in June. Like me, she feels that he needs tests that will throw things at him right and left, keeping him thinking and not giving him so much time to get creative between the letters.

[mari]

Chisamba, sorry about your saddle-fitting woes. It can be so frustrating. Every fitter that comes out also has a different take on things oftentimes, just makes you realise that, while there are certainly some principles to take note of, it's definitely not an exact science and there is a lot of room for making things work.

I've been working with the same woman for many years, I have my saddles checked twice a year, with topping up of flocking, and then a total reflock every few years as necessary. I stick with her, because while we might not always be 100% in agreement, she LISTENS to me. So valuable with that kind of long-running relationship. Also, years ago I've sworn off any fitter that promotes a specific brand. Because they will just always find something in their product range for you, even though it clearly doesn't fit...

[blob]

Gosh, Flight, that is terrifying. Glad he is ok and you were able to get him moved.

Last Thursday, the bodyworker came out to work on my two. The plan was to also try taping with RP that day, but it ended up being a very weird session for him, so we held off. Everything started normal--he was enjoying the work--some nice releases, attentive to bodyworker, all normal and good things. Then about halfway through he licked and chewed for a release but then sort of couldn't stop doing it? He started compulsively smacking licking and smacking his mouth on repeat and self administering carrot stretches--reaching his head way back to his hip. He'd stay curled in one direction and then go right back to the other direction--never going straight. This lasted for several minutes. And I admit I was kind of worried/scared because he looked like a screw was totally lose. After letting him do this for a bit (hoping he'd work out of it), I decided to just lead him forward and walk him down the barn asile and at first he walked as if he was on sedatives--wobbly and crooked and then straightened out and stopped his compulsive licking. I brought him back to where he was standing earlier and we let him hang out for a bit and the bodyworker checked him over. And he seemed fine. I put him in his stall for a bit and he went straight to the hay and again seemed normal. But clearly he had some big moment. I don't know what happened or what to make of it, but since then he has been normal and fine/good.

The other news is we have a show this weekend, it's been awhile since i've been. So, I need to make sure I dig up all my show stuff and get organized.

MM is also doing well. I'm debating looking into a half-leaser for her. Not so much to split the costs but so she gets more riding days/times and a more consistent schedule.

[exvet]

Good luck at your show Blob. Glad that MM is doing well too. It sounds like whatever 'releases' or sensations RP experienced weren't totally bad maybe even 'unlocked' some adhesions or issues that you've been chasing.

[Moutaineer]

Blob, I dont know if you've ever had serious physio or bodywork on yourself. My experience has been that a really big release, while a good thing in the end, can make you feel really off-kilter immediately after. I'm guessing horses are no different.

I had one experience a while ago where I still have no memory whatsoever of driving home afterwards or until I woke up the following morning.

[StraightForward]

Whew, I've made it through 4/5 days of the integrative hoof care workshop. I've learned a ton, but I'm a bit nervous to get under a horse tomorrow and trim in front of Daisy. OTOH, I kind of want to go to PA and take her Foundations class now too. She is an amazing teacher with absolutely bottomless knowledge. Most of the other students are professional hoof care practitioners, and incidentally, all women. I wish we had this level of forward thinking available in Idaho. I'm excited to get home and start in on assessing my horses and tweaking some things. This put all the glue-on shoe information and options in order for me, which I'll tuck away for later reference. There is also a physio helping instruct and she did an assessment on a young WB/Friesian this morning and gave some ideas that I think might apply to T. The case my group worked on was a creaky sweet old QH with arthritic knees, so it was a little out of my depth to decide what to do with him, but still super interesting to participate in the assessment process.

[exvet]

Sounds like a practical and knowledgeable workshop SF. Glad you're getting a lot out of it. I don't know this person but I'm assuming she's someone well known in the barefoot circles. Does she have a web site or Facebook page that would give more information about her?

[khall]

Glad you got the young one moved flight and he was ok from his trailering experience. Scary! Post more pics of the new farm when you can!!

Chisamba ugh saddle fitters!! I hope all is warming up now. Of course then you have mud:(

Blob good luck at the show! Hope RP finds his good canter. Interesting on the body work. I’ve not seen anything like that before with any of mine.

Exvet hoping the show went well! And yeah Junior is ok from his choke scare. Yuck on snow though. Bleh

SF hopefully you'll share your saddle experience. Glad you got some great info on your hoof symposium.


Still no foal here. Gaila is slowly creeping towards her due date and not showing much udder development at this time. She’s got a big belly though! Jingling for an easy foaling madly jingling!

Great clinic with Cedar with the exception of my new saddle. Grr. Doesn’t fit worth a flip and made Joplin sore. I don’t know if they can adjust it to fit her or not. Waiting for the fitter to come back and see. Supposed to be very flat tree which it definitely isn’t. Ugh saddle hell.

Still riding in the Spanish saddle which is great on her. But right now Joplin needs to lose weight. I’m not sure what to do other than trimming back her feed/hay. She’s on a forage based diet and has been. Plus insulin wise. And works hard. Lots of cantering because I embraced chisamba’s theory on canter improvement!


Spring is springing here. Short winter it seems

Happy riding all!

[StraightForward]

Sounds like a practical and knowledgeable workshop SF. Glad you're getting a lot out of it. I don't know this person but I'm assuming she's someone well known in the barefoot circles. Does she have a web site or Facebook page that would give more information about her?

She's probably best known for advanced glue-on work and rehabbing gnarly laminitis and other pathologies, though the default is barefoot.

Wendy Murdoch has done a few webinars with her: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORCC0IxceNA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SFQuAV5jkw

Currently sitting in a sketchy Travelodge in Laramie drinking wine out of a paper cup. Horse people don't know how to vacation properly, I think Monday T has a vet appointment for a few niggling things, so I'm going to get hoof rads and then go about applying what I've learned. I think I learned enough about glue-on considerations that I can play with that this summer and see what the girl thinks about it.

Khall - saddles, ugh. I think when weather allows I'm going to go back over to my saddlers with my BC, but insist that I ride in it and have her watch and look at how it's sitting after a ride rather than just tossing it on and doing a static flock. From what I've heard with Aviar, they're great if you can get them fitted correctly. Also they're made for warmbloods and might not be great for other body types. The person I was trying to connect with on them has been a touch flaky, so I'm hesitant. I'd rather spend the money on a Bemer at this point. We used one at the hoof workshop and it really helped the old creaky guy get more comfortable while we were poking and prodding on him. I'm sure it would be good for old Obie and I could Bemer his bad knee when he's getting trimmed.

[Tanga]

Straightforward--Cool you did the hoof care workshop. I think everyone should know how to trim. It really isn't that hard. I follow a lot of hoof care pages, so always trying to add to knowledge and do better. It seems to wok OK for me. I''ll watch that video.

Ya'll and saddles. I'm happy with my ancient Albion and my ancient Barnsby and so good pads to constantly adjust to what's going on.

We've been having a lot of rain, which is good, and found the flaw in the fixed up pasture of putting tires at the bottom of the hill--it basically created a dam where all the water flowed and turned into a slopping 18" mud bath where the horses had to eat. Not good, and then we almost lost a couple of people in the mud trying to get the horses, so I got the barn owner to have them fed where that doesn't happen. Quinn looks like crap right now, so hoping that will help her and put on weight.

I am not worrying too much about riding since we lost a bunch of shows and there is nothing until the end of April. Both horses are doing pretty well. Both of my leasors who rode Sora are still riding 1 or 2 days a week, and instead of doing my whole plan of the whole lesson thing with GP horses, I decided I didn't want to work that hard. Someone I know approached me about it, so she's also riding mostly Quilla one day a week with me helping her to prepare to get her bronze by getting another 1st score, then 2nd and 3rd. So mostly Quilla (though they all ride Quinn, too) gets ridden by four people and is loving life. She mostly plays western pleasure horse, but will come up and do the highest work if they ask right. I run her through all of the GP work and she's great. It's been interesting working with the new leasor as well as the other ones and noticing the problems that come up--Quilla esp. at first was playing I need to throw my head up in every transition with them, BSing them until I had them not allow that. Then she's super sneaky about sucking back on contact and getting behind the leg if they don't insist. Because they are both super sensitive, they were having trouble getting simple things because they horses didn't understand. A good one is canter transitions become trotting faster and faster if you lean forward into them because they don't understand, so everyone really had to learn to sit up and collect up into it. And the new leasor is really dealing with having crooked hips (as we all do) and not being able to get things because she thinks she's weighting her right hip, but is actually doing it on the left. Both horses are so great about just responding when the riders just do it right. Quinn is interesting because she feels so big and fast, and when she gets heavy in front if you pull back and sit on her, she leans more and goes more forward from you digging into her back with your butt. It's been a learning curve to teach them that you actually need to use more leg and sit lightly to get her to come up behind and back off the leaning/running feeling.

BTW--My mom got out of the hospital after about 6 weeks finally and went back with her abuser who got her to sign over POA. We've had to deal with abuser going between playing nice and threatening to get cooperation. We've all gone up there to "help" and see the giant empty house "she" bought and try to straighten up the mess. It's full of boxes lazy ass abuser has done nothing with in years. Besides still not being able to pay the bills because of spending, we found out she did a incorrect 1035 exchange, hasn't filed taxes in years, and has blown through most of the 401, so things will not last. Abuser can't keep this up no matter what. My sister is going to finesse getting my mom to agree to sign over POA to us with help of abuser in front of a notary on a day where she's more cogent (she really has no clue what is going on and it's no going to get better) and then we need to get her into the senior care facility at a much higher level than we originally thought. I have no idea what abuser is going to do as she has no life skills, and couldn't even manage to pick up pile of cardboard she had collected and put in the recycler in a period of two weeks. Right now she is my mom's 24/7 attendant, but that doesn't make up for her evil, and none of us will take her in. We basically go there and do video phone all of the time. I'm STILL trying to make sure dumbass abuser gets mom her Covid shot at Safeway because she can't seem to do anything and doesn't seem to understand that most of that six weeks in the hospital was because of the flu she was unvaccinated for. Mentally I'm just, whatever. Trying to not have my mom die alone--she's clearly very lonely not seeing people every day like she was in the hospital. If we can get her to the care center, her old friends and church group can come and see her and she can go do that.

[Moutaineer]

Tanga, the situation with your mother must be so stressful. I'm glad you aren't dealing with it alone.

SF, sounds like you are living the high life!

Potters had his Osphos shots on Tuesday, so this week has been largely off. Which was just as well as we were getting a new rollup door on the indoor on Thursday so that put us out of action for the day.

Needless to say, the door they bought for the indoor had been measured wrong and they didn't find out til they'd taken down and trashed the old one. So, the arena was still unusable on Friday, when I did think I'd be able to ride. We went for a long handwalk down the road instead, which wasn't without its excitement, but beat standing around in the mud. I'm hoping for an indoor not full of ladders by Monday. This whole renovation project has been so painfully badly managed it hurts. I don't think one single thing has not had to be re-done. It's cost a fortune and I suspect no-one has made any money on it.

Got to start ramping things up a bit as I've just signed up to ride with Mette in April. I've also got to get my new boots broken in. (Nothing special, Mountain Horse Symphony in classic, plain black.) They had better last forever once they are. I'm never breaking in another stiff pair! I think I should have got a cm shorter but I'm praying they drop more. At the moment they are trying to remove my kneecaps, even with heel lifts. My barn mate says she breaks hers in running on her elliptical. That seems impossible to me.

[exvet]

It has been confirmed. I have one who is more than willing to engage but is reticent to put the power in lifting back up off the ground (ie, needs to have faster footfalls behind) and one who is wanting to take over, dictate the ride and do anything to avoid engagement. Despite this, I had good lessons today. Junior's canter continues to improve and Brandon though very reluctant is giving me some good indications that decent second level is within our grasp. I feel pretty confident that Junior's right to left FC is consistently clean and in the air. So that's progress. I have my homework to continue to quicken Junior's hind end and do whatever I can to not lose the suppleness through Brandon's back via thousands of transitions. Now for another dose of ibuprofen and acetaminophen.

[Ponichiwa]

Running in boots??? That barnmate is a literal psychopath.

Was taking a look back at my goals, and can check off a couple for sure. Ex: Dijon just had his first bath and was a perfect gentleman minus that one bit where he protested strongly WHAT IS THIS WATER AND WHY IS IT ON ME NOOOOO. Which we resolved with some cookies.

Queso is keeping on keeping on. I hadn't realized just how much of the trot work I wasn't sitting, and since I started actually working on it more of the time, the connection in the trot has been much better. Go figure, huh?

Hope everyone is having a productive February!

[blob]

I'm sorry about the situation with your mom, Tanga, I can't imagine how stressful it must be.

Show this weekend was a mixed bag. Friday he warmed up well in the big warm-up arena and then I went into the dressage arena to practice some geometry before our rides Sat and Sun. In the actual arena, it felt like he just couldn't get his hind legs under him in the right lead canter and struggled to maintain the canter. I'm not sure if it was a difference in footing between the two arenas or just the fact that the warm-up was a giant space v. a very clear straight boundary in the dressage arena, where he had to really stand up in his shoulder. Saturday, morning he was VERY forward in the warm up and took that forward into the ring as well. His trot work felt good, but right lead canter felt not good again, which was discouraging after he'd been feeling so good at home. But the judge did not seem to notice and in video a barn mate capture, I could see that on video the canter really looked perfectly fine even though it doesn't FEEL fine. Both tests that day got decent scores, even though I did not feel great about the canter work (65 and 66).

Sunday same issues in the first test with the canter, plus some geometry mistakes put our first test at a 64. And I planned to scratch the second ride of the day because I didn't think i could work through the canter issues and it didn't seem worth it. The barn mates showing with me convinced me I should at least get on and see how he felt during warm up. So, I got on and for whatever reason ( maybe he was finally more relaxed?) his canter finally felt soft and fluid through the back. So, feeling optimistic I went into the test. The first half of the test felt really good, but halfway through my second canter work, wind and a flappy judges tent spooked him and after that he just sort of came unglued--kept trying to jig and brace and ru . So despite a nice first half of the test, I had a lot of 5s in the second half and ended up with a 63.

I'm a bit discouraged that after feeling so good in the canter at home, we took a step back at the show. I am glad I rode that last test even though it was our worst of the weekend score wise, it did make me feel like the improved canter isn't entirely gone. But, I'm not sure how to manage it or what to do for it.

It does seem like a tension makes it worse, understandably, but I don't think that is the ROOT of it. The sort of sea-leg feeling he gave me on Friday has me wondering if he needs shoes. Yes, he was cantering perfectly fine and well before these issues with no shoes. But given where we are now, I wonder if he needs shoes to help support him where he is. I don't think he's foot sore, but he might needed added support. Of course, I already did the shoe experiment with MM a few years ago and ended up pulling them. So, a part of me is hesitant.

Exvet, I believe you use aluminum shoes with Junior, if I recall correctly? What was your reason for going that route?

[exvet]

I'm sorry about the situation with your mom, Tanga, I can't imagine how stressful it must be.

Show this weekend was a mixed bag. Friday he warmed up well in the big warm-up arena and then I went into the dressage arena to practice some geometry before our rides Sat and Sun. In the actual arena, it felt like he just couldn't get his hind legs under him in the right lead canter and struggled to maintain the canter. I'm not sure if it was a difference in footing between the two arenas or just the fact that the warm-up was a giant space v. a very clear straight boundary in the dressage arena, where he had to really stand up in his shoulder. Saturday, morning he was VERY forward in the warm up and took that forward into the ring as well. His trot work felt good, but right lead canter felt not good again, which was discouraging after he'd been feeling so good at home. But the judge did not seem to notice and in video a barn mate capture, I could see that on video the canter really looked perfectly fine even though it doesn't FEEL fine. Both tests that day got decent scores, even though I did not feel great about the canter work (65 and 66).

Sunday same issues in the first test with the canter, plus some geometry mistakes put our first test at a 64. And I planned to scratch the second ride of the day because I didn't think i could work through the canter issues and it didn't seem worth it. The barn mates showing with me convinced me I should at least get on and see how he felt during warm up. So, I got on and for whatever reason ( maybe he was finally more relaxed?) his canter finally felt soft and fluid through the back. So, feeling optimistic I went into the test. The first half of the test felt really good, but halfway through my second canter work, wind and a flappy judges tent spooked him and after that he just sort of came unglued--kept trying to jig and brace and ru . So despite a nice first half of the test, I had a lot of 5s in the second half and ended up with a 63.

I'm a bit discouraged that after feeling so good in the canter at home, we took a step back at the show. I am glad I rode that last test even though it was our worst of the weekend score wise, it did make me feel like the improved canter isn't entirely gone. But, I'm not sure how to manage it or what to do for it.

It does seem like a tension makes it worse, understandably, but I don't think that is the ROOT of it. The sort of sea-leg feeling he gave me on Friday has me wondering if he needs shoes. Yes, he was cantering perfectly fine and well before these issues with no shoes. But given where we are now, I wonder if he needs shoes to help support him where he is. I don't think he's foot sore, but he might needed added support. Of course, I already did the shoe experiment with MM a few years ago and ended up pulling them. So, a part of me is hesitant.

Exvet, I believe you use aluminum shoes with Junior, if I recall correctly? What was your reason for going that route?

Yes I do use aluminum behind on Junior. I made that decision after he slipped on a neighbor's concrete driveway. He has more traction with the aluminum. My decision to originally shoe Junior all the way around is my feeling that they are either better barefoot on all 4 or shod all 4, in other words keeping them balanced when it comes to dressage. Junior has always moved and felt like he has a post on each corner in all 3 gaits. Because of where Brandon's breakover point is on his hind is why I have him barefoot all the way around. At the insistence of one of my coaches I put him in shoes all the way around a lot earlier than I usually do (with Junior and all those that came before I waited until they were working at second level). It was not right for him. Brandon's swellings and stifles issues have improved significantly since going barefoot. The real challenge I have for all of mine which is why our mustang has shoes in front is the trail riding in Arizona, far more wear on even solid hooves due to the caliche in the soil and rocks. For that reason everyone who gets trail ridden gets shoes on the front when they start and if they're my dressage horses, shoes on the hind when they hit second level because I see it gives many better support. Brandon is my one exception (I use boots on the front now if going into rocky territory)...............well and my broodmares when I had them. Retirees go barefoot as well.

Brandon's canter has given me problems as well. First was his growing issues and upward fixation of the stifle which we seem to have ironed out now. Next has been his pushy bully behavior and his refusal to work balanced into both reins especially when cantering left. I frequently have to keep rebalancing him with minor 'renver' feel every few strides in order to stack him up over his shoulders evenly. On the right lead he has a tendency to strike his right hind too far underneath himself and actually gets in his own way sometimes. I had a lesson yesterday where we started working on the canter-walk transitions and getting him to sit more. I already knew where he was going to have challenges which he did but today he did much, much better just by me keeping him on my seat and insisting that he allow me to dictate the tempo and the engagement. I also have started him in more earnest with the counter canter. That seems to be helping his balance too. Brandon is definitely one where he prefers for me to ride him using my seat far, far more than anything else and he's willing to listen once I convince him that nothing else is going to be accepted but that's after I get after him for being pushing, rude, belligerent and just a general pill. His first reaction is to threaten to rear which he has done but it's minor mostly because I successfully am able to get him to switch gears to his 'forward' focus in his brain since he's a typical Morgan and go-go-go-go-go is what he really wants to do. He just gets emotional and pissed when I tell him that I want the go but on my terms...................tweenie bopper, that's what he's like right now.

[exvet]

Closing out since I work until March 1st.

The next two months is going to be all about balance and forward for me. My last few lessons have been more focused in establishing the horses' balance correctly appropriate for the level. I have been working a lot on transitions within each gait and lots of bending lines. I have two instructors in my head constantly - one insisting that I ask for proper bending and then when I think it's enough, ask for more. I'm trying to exaggerate the amount of bend on a 20 meter, 15 meter, 10 meter circle (so bend for a 15 on a 20 and so on) so that I have the appropriate amount of bend easily at the shows or in terms of movements like half pass zig zag, pirouettes etc. The other instructor I keep hearing while I ride is 'don't accept the trot he wants to give you - ask for bigger, then smaller, then bigger, then smaller BUT when you ask for big keep the balance and ask for engagement - sit and push up and off. This is the mantra I keep repeating at both trot and canter. As a result I have been seeing improvement which I hope to build on over the next two months.

All that to say I'm improving on the quality of the gaits first and foremost as my focus. Keep it simple.

I do hope to be able to work out more over the next two months and take Brandon to the recognized show in February. I'm holding off on Junior until we can complete a fourth level test with ease. I've earned high 50s and low 60s at 4-1 in the past because his trot work is so good; but, now I want to take that into the mid 60s. As always time will tell.

Well Junior had more of a 'break' from work due to his choking episode; but, we did stick with my goals for the two months for the time we have been able to ride. I took Junior to a lesson yesterday and overall he still has show improvement with his canter. The focus was me simply riding his hind end and keeping him moving quicker behind. He had some good attempts at the canter piro. Piaffe in hand is really getting good. I also have him pretty consistent with the flying change going right to left. So baby steps for sure. I rode him in our additional acreage - 2+ acres of rolling land which he loved. I've been very happy with how his stamina is quickly coming back after his choking episode.

Brandon went to the recognized show and though I felt he was more relaxed the judges didn't really see it as I felt it so we only showed first level getting a range of 58 to 65% and scratched our second level class.





So much to improve on but still glimmers of hope.

[StraightForward]

I took Tesla to the vet today and told him "she's doing good, but I'd like to move the needle to great." We did hoof balance rads, and I've just got a touch to do to get the medial/lateral balance perfected, but we do have pretty flat palmar and plantar angles, so I'll work to get a little more heel all around. Other than that, he agreed that she seemed generally uncomfortable in her core/back, so we are doing 30 days of esomeprazole to see if that makes her any happier. If not, the next step will be Robaxin for awhile to see if that helps the bodywork stick.

Yesterday was sunny and in the 60's, so a barn buddy and I set up some cross rails and farted around with some jumping. T also did some pretty decent CC, and is getting more conversant in the W/C transitions with less prep. Today started out raining, then got colder with snow in the afternoon and looks like it will be a bit cold and wet all week.

[Aleuronx]

Pop in close out. Knock on wood I managed both work trips and dodged again getting sick at all from either. How? I will not question. Kora had a good long break for the longer international trip and she started right back to it feeling great. We are getting to the tipping point of 'sick of the indoor' for the both of us but trucking out to larger indoor and hacking is helping.

Section goals:
Feel accomplished in 2 lessons with trainer in January when she comes up to clinic. These were great! Beginning the half-pass zig-zag preparation and did the most expressive changes yet.
Address the bend, not just what she gives me but what I ask for. I've been putting the work in on this with circle spiral exercises and shoulder in transitions within gaits. It's helping to develop the '2nd trot'.
Canter piro / flying changes: on days when she feels good and canter is accessible, otherwise just work on canter quality. Flying changes went on a bit of a break in Jan but are improving and I think once we are back outside will be more consistent in more space. Kora is starting to swap which one is better/easier so I feel like that says something about our walk through flying change hell.
Hack once a week. Snow, ice and cold no matter, we double layered quarter sheets and made it out there.