I just had an incredible session with Moose. Like I said in the last post, I haven't been able to see him very often lately, so this was quite a pleasant surprise.
I decided to try to emphasize feel today, because I really want to have a light horse if I'm going to be doing liberty and higher level 3/4 things eventually. It turned out incredible. I rarely had to go to phase 3/4, but if I did, I was very clear about it, and then didn't need to again. Moose was really responding well to the lead rope. I tryed to be as subtle, but clear as possible, so his brain got involved. He had a great expression when we were done and was really LBI. I was really happy with our progress.
And it came to me today, hey, if you can ride your horse with just a string around his neck, why can't I play with my horse with just a string for a line, too? So, I think that's going to be something to aim for in the future. I want to see if I can play with my horse with just a binder twine around his neck, or something of that sort. Now that's a test of a light horse!
Besides, Moose was a lot happier today, too. I really felt like he was himself. And it was incredible how slowly we went! I really felt present with him, because I was trying so hard to go slow as to have hands that open quickly and close slowly, so I didn't want to miss his try. And he really hooked on to that.
Overall, a very neat day. I can see now why feel is so fascinating. Very cool.
