Things with the horse have been going very well.
He greets me with his ears forward and is generally friendly.
He hasn't pinned, nipped, or kicked in almost a week!
Today, I groomed him with his rope on the ground.
He just stood ground-tied and has his leg cocked and his head low.
I had my grooming box about 20 feet away and he stood still as I went back and forth to it.
He stood still as I unwrapped his tail and brushed it out. It was incredible.
I bridled him with my homemade hackamore.
It is essentially a longe cavasson with reins attached to the side rings.
It gives better contact than a halter and lead rope as a bridle.
It was the second time to ride in it and it was really great.
He is just as responsive as in a bridle with a bit, but I don't feel like his
mouth is overly sensitive this way.
In a bit, he is very sensitive and a gentle squeeze of the hand can elicit a
bigger response than was asked for.
It is hard to be gentle enough, so I gave riding without a bit a try.
I figure, if it works for basic speed and directional control, why over do it?
His behavior at feeding time has greatly improved as well.
I have been keeping the longe whip with me and keeping him away from the
shed while I pour the food.
Today, it seemed that he really is getting the idea.
I walked in with his food, he walked to the back of the paddock.
I poured the food and stepped outside of the shed.
He walked towards me with his ears forward and his head low.
He walked up to me, stopped, let me pet his forehead,
THEN walked over to his food.
Awesome!
Bonus pictures:
Charley helps with un-decorating the tree
Our niece Kami riding her first (of many, if I have any say) horse
He greets me with his ears forward and is generally friendly.
He hasn't pinned, nipped, or kicked in almost a week!
Today, I groomed him with his rope on the ground.
He just stood ground-tied and has his leg cocked and his head low.
I had my grooming box about 20 feet away and he stood still as I went back and forth to it.
He stood still as I unwrapped his tail and brushed it out. It was incredible.
I bridled him with my homemade hackamore.
It is essentially a longe cavasson with reins attached to the side rings.
It gives better contact than a halter and lead rope as a bridle.
It was the second time to ride in it and it was really great.
He is just as responsive as in a bridle with a bit, but I don't feel like his
mouth is overly sensitive this way.
In a bit, he is very sensitive and a gentle squeeze of the hand can elicit a
bigger response than was asked for.
It is hard to be gentle enough, so I gave riding without a bit a try.
I figure, if it works for basic speed and directional control, why over do it?
His behavior at feeding time has greatly improved as well.
I have been keeping the longe whip with me and keeping him away from the
shed while I pour the food.
Today, it seemed that he really is getting the idea.
I walked in with his food, he walked to the back of the paddock.
I poured the food and stepped outside of the shed.
He walked towards me with his ears forward and his head low.
He walked up to me, stopped, let me pet his forehead,
THEN walked over to his food.
Awesome!
Bonus pictures:
Charley helps with un-decorating the tree
Our niece Kami riding her first (of many, if I have any say) horse
1 comment:
He sounds like he was really behaving like a gentleman today.
Love the picture of Charlie with the lights.
If you're interested you might want to pop over to www.glenshee.blogspot.com, she just did a great post on using bitless bridles.
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