I just audited a level 2/3 clinic by Dave Ellis today - details about the clinic in another post - but I had to talk about my play session with Moose when I got home. He did INCREDIBLE!!!!!!! :-) Like I seriously think that was the best I've ever (so consequently, the best HE's) played.
I was a leader. I didn't think my way through it. I made it simple just like Dave kept repeating: "Make the right thing easy and the wrong thing difficult. That's all it is." And I did just that. I said Moose, let's do this. Moose, let's do that. And I tried doing lots of stuff with the same attitude. "Hey, I didn't ask you to do that." "Honey, I need you to try it." "Thanks for offering, but I want you to do ______ instead." And he woke up like I had slapped him in the face.
I didn't worry about things like I normally do. For instance, whenever I got particular in the past, Moose would start running off in the Circling Game. So, I would say "Well, I must've been too particular with him, and I just need to go slower." This time, I didn't conclude that I'd been too particular. I just said "Don't run off! Don't walk! Don't canter! Just trot." And after 2 laps of gallopping off, then stopping and looking at me, then cantering, then looking at me, then cantering, he got it and gave me a lap of trotting, so I stopped and rewarded him. I just made the wrong thing difficult. "You want to canter? That's great, but right now we're trotting." His Circling got a lot better, too, with the go - woah exercise Dave played with the mule. I just sent Moose off, then immediately looked at his HQ to disengage. Of course, he had going on the brain, so I said "Don't run off, just stop." And so he stopped, and then I sent him and he took off again, and we repeated the same thing over again. Took him like 3 sends before he figured out that just-getting-the-heck-outta-there when I send made it really hard to yield his hindquarters.
But the biggest breakthrough is yet to come. Moose has trouble putting his foot on/in things. If I ask him to put it inside a tire, he won't do it. He always puts it around, and I've gotten him to put it in/on, but he's never offered anything and it took a while. Well, I mentioned this in an older post that we have 2 tractor tires full of dirt right next to each other which can serve as a pedestal/jump/mounting block. Well, he's had issues jumping it, so I wanted to give it a try today. He jumped it fine one way after a few re-sends. Then, I tried the other way, and after a few re-sends, he started pawing the dirt in the tire. So, I let him, since that's progress. Then, I sent him again, and he actually stood on the dirt!!!! That's HUGE!!!!!!!!! Like I was crying tears of joy good, and doing cartwheels good and running-out-of-treats-to-feed-him good. I was so impressed. . . I even unhaltered him standing up there (after I knew that he wasn't going to jump down on me, though). A very ecstatic moment . . . I just had to share! Savvy on! :P
Showing posts with label Horse savvy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Horse savvy. Show all posts
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
The After-Affects and a Well-Deserved Lesson
So, I've been playing with Moose and things have gone pretty well since Shirley was here! Jumping things is pretty much a non-issue now as long as I prepare him. We had the best circling game I've ever gotten yesterday: his transitions were almost all from a phase 1. He even reared up once, so maybe he's having some fun, too. :)
And yesterday, I got 2 steps of backing by the tail with no help from the lead rope at all! I was so impressed with him that we ended our session on that.
Our figure-8 was really good, too. Moose has done a lot better with that since I started thinking in terms of making a really BIG figure-8, and then making it smaller as we refine it. So, yesterday we did our figure-8 and it was pretty good, but he went around one time and I asked him to yield his HQ, and he didn't. So, I popped him with a phase 4. You should have seen the look on his face! His attitude became "Yes, ma'am!" after that, and he couldn't stop staring at me. It's nice to blow their minds once and while, you know?
And we've figured something out about Bella. In the new Level 1 kit, there's a scene in the Squeeze Game segment showing a girl and her black horse doing a squeeze, and Linda goes and helps the girl out because she's being too passive. Well, that girl and horse is like my mom and Bella.
So, I went outside today intending to play with Bella based on that realization, and she cooperated for a while . . . until she took off like a shot in Circling Game and ran around like a loony for a minute. Once I got her back, my brain was thinking like crazy. What just happened? Why did she do that? I only asked her to trot. . . okay, so maybe me asking her to trot is too much pressure for her, because she starts to pull on the rope when I ask her to trot. But would that cause her to take off like that? Obviously it did, so . . . WAIT. . . was she feeling unsafe? She was calm, so she must be lacking trust then. . . hmm. . .
With this episode firmly in mind (and believe me, this isn't the first time she has fled from me), I decided that I wasn't going to repeat history again. I've gotta change what I'm doing. So, might as well start with an open mind and as I recently learned, just do something. So, I decided that in that instance she lacked trust, and that throwing a phase 4 at her just blew her up.
So, I completely changed my approach by starting with the Circling Game again, and this time treating her like an RBI. "You want to come in? Oh, that's fine, come here. Good girl. Now, back out you go, so I can send you again."She started asking me questions, so that was a good sign. Her Circling Game got completely broken, though, but I just laughed at her. I mean, seriously, what horse can't WALK even 1/4 of a circle without stopping?!? Lol, she's so funny.
Afterwards, I started massaging her mouth, because she keeps her lips so tight, and today was supposed to be worming day, but I've created a program that will work her up to it instead of just being direct-line. 4-7 sessions of massaging her lips and stopping when she really relaxes. It'd be cool if she'd let me hold her tongue, too. Moose let me do that before.
Overall, I've gotta say that Bella really reminded me about the true meaning of "It's about the relationship." I could've forced her to do circles and take the wormer, but after she took off I was conscious of putting the relationship first. So, I thank her for the lesson. It was well-deserved, because horses don't lie.
I wanted to add this in here, too, quick. Other evidence that I might be on the right track: she likes my mom more than me, even though my mom is (no offense) on the passive side; on most days, she rarely licks her lips; she's spooky; she's the type of horse that trusts people easily at a base level, but is hard to get her full trust (versus a horse that won't trust you at all, but then trusts you completely when they do); and she rarely tries to be dominant.
Well, I don't know if my efforts will be successful or not, but I'll keep you posted on my progress with Moose and Bella over the next week.
And yesterday, I got 2 steps of backing by the tail with no help from the lead rope at all! I was so impressed with him that we ended our session on that.
Our figure-8 was really good, too. Moose has done a lot better with that since I started thinking in terms of making a really BIG figure-8, and then making it smaller as we refine it. So, yesterday we did our figure-8 and it was pretty good, but he went around one time and I asked him to yield his HQ, and he didn't. So, I popped him with a phase 4. You should have seen the look on his face! His attitude became "Yes, ma'am!" after that, and he couldn't stop staring at me. It's nice to blow their minds once and while, you know?
And we've figured something out about Bella. In the new Level 1 kit, there's a scene in the Squeeze Game segment showing a girl and her black horse doing a squeeze, and Linda goes and helps the girl out because she's being too passive. Well, that girl and horse is like my mom and Bella.
So, I went outside today intending to play with Bella based on that realization, and she cooperated for a while . . . until she took off like a shot in Circling Game and ran around like a loony for a minute. Once I got her back, my brain was thinking like crazy. What just happened? Why did she do that? I only asked her to trot. . . okay, so maybe me asking her to trot is too much pressure for her, because she starts to pull on the rope when I ask her to trot. But would that cause her to take off like that? Obviously it did, so . . . WAIT. . . was she feeling unsafe? She was calm, so she must be lacking trust then. . . hmm. . .
With this episode firmly in mind (and believe me, this isn't the first time she has fled from me), I decided that I wasn't going to repeat history again. I've gotta change what I'm doing. So, might as well start with an open mind and as I recently learned, just do something. So, I decided that in that instance she lacked trust, and that throwing a phase 4 at her just blew her up.
So, I completely changed my approach by starting with the Circling Game again, and this time treating her like an RBI. "You want to come in? Oh, that's fine, come here. Good girl. Now, back out you go, so I can send you again."She started asking me questions, so that was a good sign. Her Circling Game got completely broken, though, but I just laughed at her. I mean, seriously, what horse can't WALK even 1/4 of a circle without stopping?!? Lol, she's so funny.
Afterwards, I started massaging her mouth, because she keeps her lips so tight, and today was supposed to be worming day, but I've created a program that will work her up to it instead of just being direct-line. 4-7 sessions of massaging her lips and stopping when she really relaxes. It'd be cool if she'd let me hold her tongue, too. Moose let me do that before.
Overall, I've gotta say that Bella really reminded me about the true meaning of "It's about the relationship." I could've forced her to do circles and take the wormer, but after she took off I was conscious of putting the relationship first. So, I thank her for the lesson. It was well-deserved, because horses don't lie.
I wanted to add this in here, too, quick. Other evidence that I might be on the right track: she likes my mom more than me, even though my mom is (no offense) on the passive side; on most days, she rarely licks her lips; she's spooky; she's the type of horse that trusts people easily at a base level, but is hard to get her full trust (versus a horse that won't trust you at all, but then trusts you completely when they do); and she rarely tries to be dominant.
Well, I don't know if my efforts will be successful or not, but I'll keep you posted on my progress with Moose and Bella over the next week.
Monday, October 6, 2008
One step at a time
Well, Moose and I have made some more progress. He'll now let me itch him which is exciting!! Plus, he's getting a little more LB. He actually turned into the alpha horse and now bosses Dancer around, which is a little suprising. Dancer's been the alpha around here for quite some time. It's quite interesting to see her finally resign her position. Though, smart of her: Moose could squash her with a hoof (lol, jk).
More about the itching thing: his favorite itchy spot is right on the middle of his neck. And he loves treats, too. Moose kicked Dancer out of her stall the other day, because I was trying to give her a treat and not him. Silly guys! So, he's obviously settling in better. Also, Moose is getting a little more accepting. He'll now remain LB when I put the halter on him, which is great news! Before he would kind of freeze and wouldn't move his feet very easily when I walked off.
So, slowly but surely we're getting there. I remember someone saying "If you get their confidence, they'll give you everything else." Currently, that's going to be my main focus. I'm just excited for the guy buried inside: a Dancer in disguise. Oh. . . yippee . . . lol. (hopefully, I won't have the same problems with Moose as I do with Dancer).
And we checked out that other Parelli 'trainer'. I think me and her would get along well, but she's a little too expensive for my liking. So, I'm just going to stick with Shirley (and Vicki, my current lessons instructor) which is fine by me!! :) This lady still wasn't 100% Parelli (she can't be, because she has competition-based clients) and Shirley is, so more power to her!
More about the itching thing: his favorite itchy spot is right on the middle of his neck. And he loves treats, too. Moose kicked Dancer out of her stall the other day, because I was trying to give her a treat and not him. Silly guys! So, he's obviously settling in better. Also, Moose is getting a little more accepting. He'll now remain LB when I put the halter on him, which is great news! Before he would kind of freeze and wouldn't move his feet very easily when I walked off.
So, slowly but surely we're getting there. I remember someone saying "If you get their confidence, they'll give you everything else." Currently, that's going to be my main focus. I'm just excited for the guy buried inside: a Dancer in disguise. Oh. . . yippee . . . lol. (hopefully, I won't have the same problems with Moose as I do with Dancer).
And we checked out that other Parelli 'trainer'. I think me and her would get along well, but she's a little too expensive for my liking. So, I'm just going to stick with Shirley (and Vicki, my current lessons instructor) which is fine by me!! :) This lady still wasn't 100% Parelli (she can't be, because she has competition-based clients) and Shirley is, so more power to her!
Monday, September 29, 2008
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! ;)
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! ;)
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
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 no
t 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. . .
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 no
t 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. . .
Thursday, September 4, 2008
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!!
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!!
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
A Horseman's Secret
I found a nice story on the Parelli forum:
Once there was a young cowboy working with horses and running into problems.
An old horseman came by and saw him struggling.
He asked the young man:
"Would you like to know the secrets of being a good horseman?"
"I would love to" the young man said.
The horseman held out a closed hand and said:
"If you can open this fist you will know the secret."
So...the young man pulled and pushed...and poked and struggled, then finally he gave up.
"I give up, I cant open it. What is the secret to open your fist?"
"You could have just asked me to" the horseman responded!
So, a nice message there. For another story, I played with Dancer yesterday and she was really RBE in the beginning. So, we flew sideways and backwards and I matched her energy the whole time! I also set up a little course for her to keep her interested in me.
And I found out that I don't know how to be the alpha with Dancer very well. Whenever I play with her, it always feels like we're both fighting for that #1 spot. So, Dancer never really has a ton of respect for me, because I don't know how to earn it yet!
But at least I'm not doing that badly! Dancer decided to roll while on line! There was a bunch of mud in her pasture, and since she was sweaty she took a couple of rolls. So, I can't be that bad or else she wouldn't feel safe enough to roll! Well, it was quite cute!
Once there was a young cowboy working with horses and running into problems.
An old horseman came by and saw him struggling.
He asked the young man:
"Would you like to know the secrets of being a good horseman?"
"I would love to" the young man said.
The horseman held out a closed hand and said:
"If you can open this fist you will know the secret."
So...the young man pulled and pushed...and poked and struggled, then finally he gave up.
"I give up, I cant open it. What is the secret to open your fist?"
"You could have just asked me to" the horseman responded!
So, a nice message there. For another story, I played with Dancer yesterday and she was really RBE in the beginning. So, we flew sideways and backwards and I matched her energy the whole time! I also set up a little course for her to keep her interested in me.
And I found out that I don't know how to be the alpha with Dancer very well. Whenever I play with her, it always feels like we're both fighting for that #1 spot. So, Dancer never really has a ton of respect for me, because I don't know how to earn it yet!
But at least I'm not doing that badly! Dancer decided to roll while on line! There was a bunch of mud in her pasture, and since she was sweaty she took a couple of rolls. So, I can't be that bad or else she wouldn't feel safe enough to roll! Well, it was quite cute!
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Expect a lot, Accept a little, Reward the slightest try
I have great news about Dancer's catching problems!! I was halfway across the pasture from Dancer today, with her halter in hand and Dancer trotted to me!! It was an amazing moment, because she looked so cute! Her ears were perked forward and she really looked happy to see me. It really made me think I'm on the right track with her, and that's such a relief!
Also, I was thinking about Dancer. She has proved to be a challenging little pony, lol. But I was thinking about how she has so much to teach me, because she's the kind of teacher who is looking for perfection from the beginning. Hence the title, because it seems like that's what she does!
Also, I'm happy about our progress together. I can see that I've still got a ways to go with her, but it's already come so far from what it was in the beginning when I was clueless. I still haven't got her respect 100% yet. I think it's going to take a LONG time for that (not that I'm not going to take that time, of course I am!!), but I know I've at least gained a few brownie points since then. Currently, Dancer respects me enough to keep her ears up when I'm with her, and watch my personal space, so that's definitely progress. If I had to guess, I'd say she respects me at near 65-70%.
I thought it was really inspiring when Heidi came to play with Dancer some months ago. What Heidi established with Dancer in a matter of minutes is something that I wish to be able to do. Plus, Heidi had Dancer's full respect! Basically, that showed me what I wanted Dancer's relationship to be with me.
Also, I was thinking about Dancer. She has proved to be a challenging little pony, lol. But I was thinking about how she has so much to teach me, because she's the kind of teacher who is looking for perfection from the beginning. Hence the title, because it seems like that's what she does!
Also, I'm happy about our progress together. I can see that I've still got a ways to go with her, but it's already come so far from what it was in the beginning when I was clueless. I still haven't got her respect 100% yet. I think it's going to take a LONG time for that (not that I'm not going to take that time, of course I am!!), but I know I've at least gained a few brownie points since then. Currently, Dancer respects me enough to keep her ears up when I'm with her, and watch my personal space, so that's definitely progress. If I had to guess, I'd say she respects me at near 65-70%.
I thought it was really inspiring when Heidi came to play with Dancer some months ago. What Heidi established with Dancer in a matter of minutes is something that I wish to be able to do. Plus, Heidi had Dancer's full respect! Basically, that showed me what I wanted Dancer's relationship to be with me.
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