Elusive Moose

Well, I've been trying really hard recently to only spend undemanding time with the ponies (hehe). And it's going well, so I don't really have anything new to report. I'm a little impatient with the progress, but as they say "do less sooner rather than more later". Besides, he's improving!! Just not at the speed I want, lol. Anyways . . .

I realized there's a  predator in me, and that' s a little shocking! I always feel the need to just put the halter on and go, so I ended up forcing the halter onto the ponies (when they'd actually let me play with them, ah the good ol' days). I guess I found the right teachers then, lol. Neither Moose nor Dancer will let me get away with that!! :) Especially Dancer, she's made it clear she won't be forced into anything. *Nervous laugh*

On another note, we went to see a horse for my mom yesterday. She was everything she was looking for and then some!! I mean, she even costed more! So, yeah bottom line is we're not getting our hopes up. Mom wants her, yeah, but she costs too much. So, she made an offer, but we'll see. If it all pans out, I'll certainly give you more details!! Plus pictures (stupid camera didn't work at the time).

Lastly, I found another Parelli instructor!! Well, not a PP, but an instructor that does Parelli that lives about 20 minutes away from me! Fine by me!! So, we're going to go see her this weekend and if we like her I'll have a new riding lessons instructor! Which would be great, considering that the ones I currently attend are capitalizing on some of my progress-killing talents. Lol, lessons are great and all, it's just that I ride school horses and the ways I treat them are different than how I can treat the horses at home. So, I'm developing habits that aren't what I'd like to have (including, but not limited to: using a concentrated rein during Freestyle, over-analyzing, nagging, and expectations over principles). So, I'm hoping that I can downplay some of these 'talents' and learn how to get better results with a 100% Parelli mentor. Maybe there's hope for me yet! ;)

Progression? I wish. . .

Well, the first 2 days I got Moose I was ecstatic! And boy, do I mean ecstatic!! Oh, man, you should've heard me talking, my mom listened to me blab for about 2 hours on Saturday just saying how brilliant he was and how excited I was to finally have him here. I mean, he followed me back to the stall (without any prompting) after I took his halter off: translation, HE LIKED ME!!!! Oh, I was psyched! After all, Dancer hates me. So, it's nice to feel loved, you know? *

Sunday wasn't as great. Nothing horrible happened or anything, it's just it didn't go as I wanted it to. I got really confused! I mean, I can't tell what his horsenality is and it's driving me nuts! He's a fast learner, smart, mildly mouthy, mildly friendly, and curious (when I saw him in Prairie Du Chien he was non-spooky, and confident, too): LBE traits. But he's also extremely quiet/obedient, a little hesitant, and a little distrustful: RBI traits! So, which one do I treat him as?!?!?! *exasperated sigh* Plus, I was always told that/saw that horses start testing their owners in new environments to see what their limits are. Is it okay if Moose isn't doing that? I know I might be rushing this one, but he seems kind of RBI and not at all dominant! So, that notion is getting me confused, too. But again, I can be patient here: it's only been 4 days, lol!

WELL. . . Monday. . . one word: ugh. Apart from having to go to school, I also managed to ignore my gut feeling. Again. This time it said Moose was unconfident. So, I followed that feeling for a little while and just brushed Moose. Though, that (in my eyes) didn't seem to get anything done. Afterwards, I decided to try some of the games. He won't let me do Friendly (tossing the rope over his back)!!! He was backing up and trying to walk away from me, with a couple of little rears thrown in for emphasis. Of course, as soon as he stopped I stopped. Later, I looked up rearing on the Parelli problems area, and it says horses rear because A) they're being held back or B) they feel trapped or cornered. So, I can conclude that Moose must have felt trapped, RBI, since I wasn't holding him back at all. But if I can't convince him I'm not a threat, then how can I possibly do the rest of the games? And I know his needs are safety, comfort, play, and food. Another little thing I've noticed: when I'm near him on line he won't eat. So does that mean that he's not comfortable, or he's not safe?

And the thing that really got me is that when we went outside later to put some Neosporin on a cut on his back foot, he wouldn't let me :( He started walking away from me!! And it was RB kind of walking away, not like LB dominance. So, "oh boy!"

* Furthermore, I guess I'm just frustrated/sad, because Moose actually liked me for 2 days, and I'm scared of him not liking me! I didn't even realize how much I missed being liked (by horses) until I got him! I mean, Dancer won't let me catch her, and while I won't give up on her it's still extremely disheartening! RBIs seek comfort, remember? So, sorry if I'm rambling. . . Just kind of upset with myself that I don't know how to get the horses to want to be with me. . .

The Journey RE-started

Have you ever heard the saying "There's a light at the end of the tunnel?"

Well, imagine that the tunnel I'm talking about is really long.

[caption id="attachment_278" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Ooh, aren't they cute together!!"][/caption]

And I was trying to go through it. Well, my primary source of inspiration was that light at the end (and some friends, of course). That light was my hope. It kept me going: the notion that somewhere, somehow I was going to find "the one".

Well, I'm proud to say that I have now reached that light. And it has a name: Moose. . . . Yes, today is the day! Moose has arrived! And silly Dancer is in heat and won't let anyone near him. Hehe, she's being a cranky little mare. But I know she's happy, it's just that she's too arrogant to admit it.

And on the topic of Dancer, I have more good news!! Thanks to Heidi's advice about being too focused/intense, I have currently been able to catch her!! I tried circling in on her with the intention of brushing her. She let me stand near her in 5-8 minutes!! That's a great time considering that previously it would've taken me about a half hour, and then she would've just walked away right away anyways!! So, hopefully after a long regression, we're finally starting to get things rolling again. And I'm going to pray that I didn't just jinx myself ;). Hehe.

One more thing: I had another session at Exceptional Equestrians yesterday. It went well, and my mom and I both walked about 4 miles. Though, one walker fell down due to untied shoelaces -it was actually quite humorous once we realized what Madasa had done (Madasa untied this lady's shoelaces, and then the lady tripped)- and we had to do an emergency dismount for a child on a horse (no one got hurt)! The child, Henry,  was riding Madasa and she had a little spook. And due to Henry laying down on her, I couldn't get him off of Madasa. But luckily Donna the director plucked Henry from him and needless to say Madasa had a 'time-out' after that.

So, I've had an exciting week so far!! My Parelli journey has 'officially' RE-begun. And tomorrow we have more Horsin' Around to do. Plus on Sunday, we're going to look at a horse for my mom! So, a pretty horsey week!! YAY!!

An AMAZING show!!

So, I went to Ots yesterday, along with my mom, a friend, and Heidi. Oh, boy was that amazing!! They started out with some clinics, the order of which can be found here. The clinics were interesting. I liked the Choosing a Dressage horse one, because I tend to disregard confirmation and focus on horsenalities (which is alright to a point). But overall, I liked Wayne's the best.

But the real fun started with the show! Oh, that was incredible!! I mean, apart from the fact that the poor horses were extremely right brain (and I sure don't blame them: they had to walk into a dark cave full of predators, and as soon as they get in music turns on full blast, so they were terrified!) the show was really amazing!! I mean, I learned that horses can kick beach balls (and pop them, lol); driving horses can pull people on skis; and guys can ride horses shirtless (and the guy was cute, too)! It was really exciting!

Here are a couple videos and a bunch of pics!! In the first video, Endel Ots is doing his Freestyle routine on a super talented horse (I think he was named Bentley). And in the second video, the riders were performing a really cool maneuver with Yvonne in the middle! Check out the pictures below, too!!

Basically, we had a blast!! There might be another show next year, so I'll keep you guys informed if we hear of any dates. Apparently, Yvonne and her crew are in demand!! :)

Equestrians are MOST Exceptional!!!!

I had a really great oppurtunity today: I volunteered at Exceptional Equestrians!! Exc. Eques. is a non-profit organization that focuses on hippotherapy and therapeutic riding for disabled children. Well, I first heard about this place a while ago and my mom and I decided to go volunteer today. It was quite interesting.

As soon as we walked into the arena, we see this little girl sitting on a big, black horse. She's smiling away, and she turns to us and waves, ecstatic to have us here without even knowing who we are. Then, another kid just does the same thing. It was really cute! So, we helped hold the kids in place for one session. My mom and I were side-walkers for a boy named Henry. Afterward, we got more information and such since today was our first time at Exc. Equestrians.

Oh, and a reason you should get involved: Leaders/side-walkers usually walk about 2 miles in an hour session. So, we can have fun, help kids, be around horses, and lose weight at the same time!! Now, isn't that exciting!! Lol. So, if anyone is interested in volunteering or wants more info, let me know and I'll hook you up!

And one more thing, the lady (Donna) who is in charge of Exc. Eques. is looking for a home for one of her horses. The horse is a Shetland/ Paso Fino mix named Amigo. He's pretty small, so size-wise is more like a  Shetland. He's sorrel and sounds like a RBE (extremely herd bound, likes to go, hyper, fearful, unconfident). He's 12 years old. She got him from a lady who had supposedly shown him. Though, I think if he was to be a riding horse, he'd have to get a refresher. The lady let him sit for a while, before she decided to sell him. Anyways, Donna has owned him for a year and is really looking for a nice home for him. She's selling him for free, because he's too hyper and herd bound for her needs. Donna has never ridden him before, because he's hyper on the ground, so she doesn't dare think what he'd be like undersaddle. So, she is selling him as a companion horse. I think he'd make a good Parelli project, but remember he's small!! Basically, if anyone is looking for a free companion horse or knows of someone who needs one, let me know and I'll give you Donna's phone number.

Mr. Moose

We got a call from Moose's owner yesterday. They said not to worry, they haven't forgotten about us or anything! But they said to expect him in about another week or two. But we're going to see if we can get him sooner, so we're thinking of arranging shipping to get him. Unfortunately, we don't have a truck that can pull a trailer and we'd need a trailer (no offense Lisa M, but I would rather go all the way to get him and then be SURE that he'd fit in the trailer ). So, if anyone knows someone that would be willing to loan us a tall trailer, or hauls horses for a reasonable price (it is 500 miles round trip, btw), then please comment!

Horsey Hide n' Seek

Dancer let herself be caught today! YAY!! Score one for Erica! I was in the pasture with Dancer's halter and I decided to go sit on a barrel. I had to think for a minute on how I was going to try to catch her today. And thanks to a sudden burst of intuition, I came up with the idea of playing hide and seek!! So, I got off the barrel and hid behind it. Then, I sprinted around to hide behind another barrel and the silo and a tree and another tree and . . .you get the idea.

So, Dancer picked her head up and looked at me two times total. But I couldn't get her curious enough to actually come see what I was doing. And eventually, I got tired of running and Dancer stopped caring about the wierd person running around the pasture. So, I changed my strategy a little bit. This time, I played a little catching game with her: I walked up to her and drove energy towards her HQ until she looked at me. Once she gave me two eyes I sprinted back to hide behind a barrel. Next time, instead of running back behind the barrel, I turned around and walked back. After that, I gave her a treat and then walked back. Next time, she let me walk all the way up to her to give her the treat. Since she was being really accepting, I tried putting the lead rope around her neck to see if she'd let me. She did, so I walked with her a little ways and then put the halter on!! I was so excited that she actually let me!!

Well, I can't say much else was exciting, because after I got the halter on, I just let her graze for an hour before the farrier showed up. But it was quite an accomplishment to have her want to be with me again!!

You can't catch me!!

Oh, Dancer. I thought we were done with catching problems!!! Why does she have to be so smart? Lol, no wonder I like RB horses better, they're actually LOOKING for a leader!! I think I'm really going to have to think of something or analyze myself, because I must be doing something extremely wrong!! Maybe I'm reading her wrong or something, or acting differently. I think I act different when on line, because I realize that she can't escape from me. But I'm pretty sure there's more problems than just that!! Well, I'll have to fix that! She used to run to me, after all!!

But anyways on a better note, since I couldn't catch Dancer I decided to run around the pasture a little bit to ger her used to humans moving at fast speeds. I remember reading somewhere that you should run up to your horse and skp around and stuff, so I decided to try it. I took the carrot stick, and flailed it around (no where near Dancer, she was quite a ways towards one of the fences) and started skipping. Well, as soon as I reached her first threshold, she flipped out and ran WAY over to the other side of the pasture. So, I tried it again, keeping the same phase of intensity, but increasing the distance away from her. That was alright for a little while, but then she took off again. This time, I decided to try skipping and moving the CS only, not the Savvy string. Again, she totally freaked. But MAN, is she funny when she's scared, though!! It just made me laugh, I was barely skipping and it's just like ha, Dancer's afraid of people skipping!!