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Showing posts with label discouragement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label discouragement. Show all posts
12/24/16
The Power of the Walk/Stop Exercise and 10 Hours of Riding
I have a new horse, a Paso Fino, and can you say hot, and crazy as a bedbug ! Oh my goodness, spin, and way, way too fast. The action "walk" just was not in her vocabulary. Not since my beloved Jose have I had a horse as scared and wacko as this little girl.
So after 5 days just riding her in the playground (my work area) and forever and ever and ever teaching her how to do walk/stop she finally learned to listen. We did not get to her to being able to walk 4 steps, she could only do 3 steps before she sped way up again, but she finally did catch on to the "stop" and the "release".
Once Cassie caught on to walk 3 steps, stop, 3 steps, stop and wait for me I then took her out onto the trail. Needless to say, the first ride scared the bejesus out of me. BUT, she would actually stop when I asked her too - every single 3 steps before we would start up again. Did that for 2 hours on the trail, then next day 3 hours, then next day 2 hours, and I have to admit the first 2 days were pretty awful, but my goodness, the third, fourth and fifth days - what a HUGE improvement.
Her head finally dropped and we ACTUALLY COULD WALK quite a distance, and yesterday I started taking her down hills which I would have never, ever dreamed possible.
So, we are now in a partnership - she trusts me and I trust her - more work needs to be done, she is not perfect but I am no longer afraid of her nor is she afraid of me.
I had forgotten how well this works - ALWAYS - I have done it with many outlaw horses through the years but it has been a spell since I have had a new horse.
Try it and you will be impressed with the outcome.
Remember, it takes the time it takes and it will take less time.
The best to you.
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| Cassie, Paso Fino |
Adventure Horse Riding in NYS Smilla13@g Smilla13@gmail.com (Mary Dixon)
www.RideNYS.com
12/19/16
Discouragement and Hurt Feelings from Horses
I used to tell folks all the time not to take incidents, accidents, etc., personally. Then a few years ago after a crash I was so emotionally hurt that my horse would do that to me that I almost just sold him. And, I pretty much ignored him for almost 6 months.
Well, my girlfriend is now in the same situation. Her horse laid down yesterday, in the deep snow, twice. When she went to mount him again in all the bulky winter gear, he took off. She had to trudge through the snow at night, thank heavens there was a moon out there, and she was scared and exhausted. We rounded up a very scared horse who kept running away and ponied him back to the ranch.
First words out of her mouth were "he going to auction !". When I inquired how she was doing this morning, she texted back and told both my other girlfriend and me that she was seriously thinking of giving up riding.
Hopefully, after a few days, she will settle down and rethink the situaton. Horses are just fantastic at teaching humility and discouragement and she loves her horses dearly.
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| My girlfriend and the Outlaw ~ in better weather ! |
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