Kris and Kholo

Today was Kholo's first session with me. We both had to get to know each other a little so I took things slow. My back was sore, so I didn't want to do anything overly strenuous. I also didn't want to throw him into the deep end without an understanding that he's safe.

I bridled him and he took the bit nicely. For horses starting in the bit, I follow the bit with a sweet of some type. Surprisingly, Kholo couldn't figure out how to get this treat past the bit so he fiddled with it in the front of his mouth and then gave up. This tickled me! I picked a piece up and put it behind the bit for him. He'll sort this out in time. It was pretty cute, though.

We went into the arena and I started with lateral flexion. He didn't quite understand so I helped him along. He has a great nature - he tries and doesn't over-try. He's confident and calm and he doesn't get worried while learning. I know it's going to be fairly easy to help him understand what we riders are after. We played with isolation of the ends after he started to get a feel for the bit and what to do with the sensations in his mouth. I played the most with backing from my seat combined with bit pressure. Improving his backup will make the most positive changes in his halt. His backup and slow and tentative, so I'll be working on getting his backing motion more fluid and confident.

Kris and Rio were in the arena with me and I coached them along while I played with Kholo. One of the things I've really wanted to get Rio and Kris playing with is passenger riding. Kris has been challenged by Rio's sensitivity and trust has been hard to attain. Over the past year, we've built on Kris understanding how little it takes with Rio and now she can do soft transitions on a loose rein. Rio, in turn, has become a softer horse. He's much less reactive and takes things more in stride. He's pliable and willing to learn. He's a very nice horse and he fits Kris nicely. He has a lot to teach Kris. So, this evening, I was able to get Kris riding as a passenger for the first time. This means, in my large arena, Kris asks Rio to trot. Rio's job is to maintain the trot. Kris' job is to simply ride. Rio can go wherever he pleases and if he breaks gait into walk or canter, Kris responds by bringing him back to the trot. I could tell by Kris' expression when I asked her to try this that she was unsure. I've been waiting to get her doing this type of riding until I felt they could handle it together. It's perfect for this type of scenario - lack of trust in the horse.

Well, they did it and they were great! Rio covered the entire arena after realizing there was no comfort with me and Kholo. He trotted around and seemed to keep asking Kris what he was supposed to be doing. Kris kept him trotting beautifully and a few minutes in, Rio let out a huge blow of relief. I know I had the biggest smile on my face watching this. I'd like her to start each session this way for 7 sessions. She agreed to do that and she was convinced it was a good thing to do. She and her horse have some great times ahead.

Kholo was with me through all of this - feeling of the bit, learning me and beginning to understand. He's a smart boy and tomorrow will be a nice leap off the foundation we built today.

Kris got Cowboy and Rio trimmed after the lesson.

Kholo and the Herd

I don't like to introduce horses to the herd if they aren't going to live here. The herd is a tight knit family with an established heirarchy. Newcomers don't fare well and I keep them safe by separating them from the herd. Kholo had been in the stall and run for 2 days and I wanted to let him out to explore and move. I put my herd in the middle of the track and gave Kholo the track to himself last night. Well, this morning, when I came out to feed, Kholo was with the herd. I'm guessing he jumped the fence as no fence was down. The track is only electrical ribbon on fiberglass posts, so it wouldn't be terribly difficult to get through if the horse didn't mind the electricity. I guess Kholo decided he'd rather be chastised and pushed around by the herd than be on the track alone. I don't know how long he'd been with them, but they were all (especially Rain, surprisingly) telling him to "piss off"! I haltered him out and put him back in the stall and run. He sustained a couple minor bites, but he was fine. All the bites were on the left side, which I found interesting. He also carries his tail to the left. I'll be watching and studying that.

Herd behavior is so fascinating to me. I could watch the dynamics play out all day.

A gelding who thinks he's a stallion

I've had Cowboy and Gem in stalls for several weeks. Cowboy is in because he doesn't respect the fence when there's spring grass. Gem is in because he leaves so many marks on the other horses. Here's the problem... mares are in spring heats and Rio, the only other gelding, thinks he's the stallion. I'm guessing he was cut late because he mounts the mares much more than Gem or Cowboy. He also has stallion behaviors all the time (low nickering to mares, territorial with the mares). Luckily, he's not at the top of the pecking order. So today, I let the boys out to get Rio in check. They don't have near the testosterone and they'll keep Rio from mounting the mares. His stallion-like behavior is becoming slightly dangerous for the people that come around.

Studying Horse Psychology

A Flashlight and watching each horse's reaction...

I keep a manual flashlight in the barn. It's the type that doesn't need batteries. When you need light, you crank its wheel and it lights up. The more you crank, the brighter it gets. I was using it and decided to try an experiment with the horses. How do they feel about this noisy apparatus? I put it to the test...

Cowboy - first to investigate, least afraid, close investigation
Abby - snorted, but never moved her feet, went back to eating quickly
Rain - next least afraid, actually lipped it
Nina - next least afraid, went back to eating fairly quickly with flashlight in the hay
Z - next least afraid, much more reactive, but very quick to cope, then able to eat from the bin
Rio - next, quick to leave, finally after several minutes, stopped moving. i waited and he looked to me. i touched him while i cranked. my touch helped tremendously! he was not calm, but trying hard.
Tina- the most afraid, initially quickly trotted away with energy. then, eventually smelled it while it was quiet. i turned away, cranked it slowly and she was gone. she would obviously need to most time to adjust.

This was a fun experiment for me. People think I'm crazy, but it was midnught when I did this. There was some down fence and I had to travel the next morning so I wanted to get it fixed. I walked the fence with the flashlight before coming back to the herd and seeing how stimulating the flashlight was.

Some things to consider:
1. How much did the other horses reaction affect the individual horse's reaction?
2. How long would approach and retreat take to turn around the more worried horse's responses?
3. Some horses seemed more brave when I touched them while they investigated. Is that related to the good handling they've had in their lifetime and the way they feel about people? Or is a touch helpful no matter the human history?
4. Does it necessarily mean that more frightened horse couldn't eventually be as confident as the least frightened horse with training and time?
5. Rio and Tina were probably equally concerned about the flashlight. They also spend the most time together. Does that have impact? Does Tina learn to be cautious from Rio? Or would she have acted that way regardless of Rio's response?
6. If I did this every day for 7 days, how much would their reactions improve?

Moving on... Single-handed!

After about three days in bed, I couldn't take it anymore. I just had to go to the barn.I spent several days thinking about all of the things that I can account for the horses with one arm. I can do work at liberty, I can work on desensitizing, create more draw, improve the catching game, undemanding time... my only limit is my imagination.

It's definitely easier to think about the things I can do with my horses then thinking about the things to do with the horses here in training. I feel differently about the horses that are here in training. I can develop things on a much deeper level with my horses because they're here forever. The horses here in training are only here for a limited time. I have to give them the best that I can in a short period. It's about giving them the best foundation that someone else can take to the next level. I want them solid. I want them confident to learn and confident with humans. I want them asking questions trying to give answers.

I decided my best move was to make sure my arm is as stable as possible before I move things forward. On Monday the 16th, I'll get the cast for my arm and that will give me more stability. I'm also thinking to get Chrissy involved and let her be my other arm. For Tina, I'll be focusing on building her confidence by desensitizing with various objects and asking her to touch and explore scary things. I also want to build her catching game. For Nina, I'll wait till I'm better. Nina is fine growing and learning in the herd, and not getting my attention right now.

For Gemini, there is a ton I can do. Largely, I can focus on level III liberty. We have a lot of work to do there. And really if I can get his draw very strong, we'll be well on our way. For he and I, a lot of the work is in building the relationship. For Zarah, I want to build more trick training and increase our general bond. For Rain, it's time to take tricks to a new place. She so motivated and so ready to do more. I want to teach her to lay down with a hand cue.

For Tina, I'm hoping I can get Chrissy to help me desensitize her flank area with flank ropes and cinches. I'm feeling very positive and I'm determined to not let this setback bring me down. I'm going to use this time to develop my imagination. And focus on some of the games that maybe don't get enough attention when I'm well and riding. It's only a few more weeks and we'll be back in action.

To keep things interesting, I'm working on all that's required to get the indoor arena built. There are things like financing, permits, project details, bids for work to prepare for the installation, etc. I'm also hoping that the horses feet can go for five more weeks so I can trim them myself. I have a backup trimmer to call if I need to but I like to just do that myself.

On Saturday, I spent a little time with Zarah, teaching her to do the Spanish walk from zone two. When I lift my leg, she lifts her leg. It's cute and fun, and it's an easy for her to feel like she's doing the right thing. She's never wrong. She knows how to do the Spanish walk from zone one, and when I'm back in the saddle that's our next place. Spanish walk from the saddle. Should be a breeze with all of the ground prep work we'll have done.

Horses are getting along well, the herd is settled. One week down to five weeks to go. I'm back to doing horse chores with my one arm and I'm about to do a whole lot more while wearing this cast. It's good to be back in the barn.

For tracking: Kris trimmed Tina's hinds for me today.

Pics of Tina in the herd (for you Nanni!)

Nina has gotten along nicely with this little QH gelding named Rio. He's only here for a couple months, but she really bonded to him quickly. Cute!













Here, several from the herd are soaking up the warm Colorado sun. I like to see Nina feel safe resting while the others stand guard. Rio is closest to her, Cowboy is my sister's gray and Abby is behind him. Abby is the mare that Tina has buddied with since early on.










This is a nice shot she and Rio. Rio is covered in mud! The snow is melting too fast for the ground to absorb, so it's been a slosy, muddy weekend.













This is just such a nice shot of her laying alone. My sister gets great pictures! I love this one. I can almost imagine her snoring - she seems so relaxed and peaceful.

Snow, snow, SNOW!!

Managing 8 in this blizzard is a little rough! :-) I will be better setup for the next winter storm. We have about 20" in total, though it's tough to tell because the snow drifts are insanely high. Some of the drifts are 4 feet! The horses have been locked away and they are all starting to look at me a little sideways. They want OUT!

The storm is coming to an end tonight so I let them all out and fed the hay on the snow drifts. I hope they stay warm enough as their winter coats aren't fully in and only a few really warrant blankets (Abby, Tina, Zarah). Most of the herd is pretty hardy in the cold as long as there's hay.

Tomorrow I'll get Rain out to pull the kids in the snow and then maybe Z, too. The kids love that.

I'm dying for horse time. Seriously, been a sorry 8 or 9 days with weather and travel. My mind is turning over all the things I want to accomplish when I can get back to it. Hopefully tomorrow will work.

Rio joining the herd

Today, I put Rio out with the herd. He's a cute little Quarter Horse gelding here for a couple months of training. To my surprise, Tina is playing a crucial role in keeping Rio far from the herd until he's accepted. Tina is really changing here. Last night, Loma came to give me a dressage lesson and she was really surprised by how calm Tina was. I like to see how the horses adapt and they all do things their own way. Tina came here timid and submissive with a lot of extroversion. I'm seeing her show confidence and comfort in her own skin with the herd. She's showing her full potential.

I'll be riding her in the large arena very soon. She's ready to leave the round pen and start riding some patterns. Good for her!

Rio looked to be doing fine with the herd on his first day. He respected the boundaries set by the herd and found Rain to be his buddy. The two of them were hanging together the first day. That's unusual - most of the time, my herd keeps the new guy standing out alone for a week or so. Rain was accepting Rio the first day.

Gem on the 45' line and more trimming

Beautiful, warm and calm afternoon/evening! I wanted to work with Gemini online to start building up for a level 3 assessment. He had lots of energy today! We started by driving from zone 3/4 and heading out to my front pasture. We got far enough away that he was just slightly on edge. We went from driving to falling leaf, circle game and then some COD's. His COD needs work, he's losing his momentum and turning like he should with falling leaf. He doesn't know the difference yet. With the circle game, he got emotional and went at full gallop back to the barn. He can get a lot of speed on the 45' and I tried to pump my grip - slipping it then grabbing it. That can sometimes work to get a horse to stop running for a moment. I ran out of rope too fast and he went back to the barn. That is called being BUCKED OFF from the ground! LOL I got him, brought him back to the same pasture spot and started again. Again, when he was cantering on the 45', about 30' away from me, he 'bucked me off' and ran for the barn. Darn! Twice and he's learned how to get it done!

OK, got him back out there and this time, kept him closer - about 20 feet maximum away. I was looking for him to be more with me, putting some pressure on Z3 to keep his body bent into the circle and playing at a slower pace. Now, we were getting somewhere. We got some better COD's, but still not great. However, we were able to canter circles at about 30' - together! Finally. No galloping away and leaving me in the dust. That was good, then we could move on to something else.

I wanted to help Chrissy with her figure 8's as she still doesn't feel like she's getting good ones. She's been doing lots of driving from Z3, which is a great game for her. Her horse is still challenging her authority quite a bit and she's struggling to be clear and deliberate with her ask. We talked about Suggest, Ask, Tell, Promise. She tends to get stuck at Ask, never getting to Tell or Promise. She's working on her assertion which will translate directly to leadership. It's not about whacking the horse. It's about a clear intention and request with the willingness to follow it through.

She was starting to get some really nice figure 8's. Once she clearly pushed his Z1/Z2 around the obstacle, they were on easy street. That's been the hardest part for her. Which makes perfect sense for a Left brained horse to be sticky in the front. We talked about her playing with Rain and I think that's not a bad idea. It might help Chrissy understand the nature of a horse to play with another horse and see the response she gets.

Before I put Gem back, I asked him to yield his hind toward me for mounting. I just want to teach him to bring his hind around and not get upset by that type of request. He was much better than the first time we played with it, but still defensive. We'll keep working on it.

Finally, I wanted to trim Nina. I ended up getting only one hoof done because my wrists were so sore. Trimming two horses the night before had my tendons irritated in my wrist. I spent a bunch of time just working on softening her to the idea of trimming. In the past I've allowed her to brace during trimming and forced her some to comply. I made a mistake and I realized that Nina has developed a negative reaction to trimming time. I'll get that fixed up right away by taking the time it takes and allowing her to understand it's her choice, but holding her foot up is a much easier way to go. I also won't brace against her! If she wants her foot back, she can have it. I need the horses to all cooperate and it starts with me having a natural attitude and letting the horse choose to cooperate. Trimming is hard work and it's so easy to become predatorial about the process. I've caught myself thinking, "Dang it, just hold still!". That's not a natural approach to horses at all and it's doubly ineffective. Always learning...

We'll get the other 3 hooves trimmed over the next 2-3 days, focusing first on her willingness and choosing to cooperate. We'll focus secondly on getting the trim done. My horses should always be getting easier to trim, not harder. I'm actually proud of myself for admitting my mistake and moving forward with the correct attitude.

Finally, Tina was showing some interesting behavior. The west pasture lines the neighbors property with numerous miniature horses and a couple paints. My herd will sometimes go and hang out with that herd of the fence. Well, yesterday and today, I noticed my herd coming in to the barn to eat or whatever, but Tina has stayed out in the west. She stayed out there when the other herd was nowhere to be seen. She stayed out there all alone, against the fence. What does that mean? She's ok to stand alone, acres away from her herd? She could still see the other herd (though I couldn't) and preferred that to coming in for feed? Very interesting. Chrissy drove her back on the ATV and we closed the west pasture gates for now. Surely, there's something she really likes about that other herd - all my horses feel that way about that other herd. I also wondered if she didn't know how to get back on the track as I saw her call once or twice to my herd. Horses aren't great problem-solvers and the west pasture is fairly new to Tina. Maybe she thought she was locked in? Just interesting behavior.

A fat herd and Zarah's back!

Work was long today... way longer than expected. I had big plans for horse training but my day job won.

I came out to a sleeping and very relaxed herd. Gem was in the front pasture alone and the rest of the herd was looking pretty good. They all look fat right now! Even Tina, the newest horse here for training has put on some weight since her arrival. Hmmm... I can cut hay back a little I suppose, but happy to see them carrying a little extra as we head into winter.

The herd is getting along lovely and it's nice to see them take turns laying down while the others keep watch. It's just a peaceful scene.

We had non-stop rain the last 4 days in a row and the temps were so cold I had to put a few in winter blankets (Z, Abby and Tina). The others are so hearty, they don't need the blanket support. I was glad today to pull blankets off and stow them until temps drop again. Winter coats are coming in strong now and they all look hairier by the day. Goodbye sleek summer coats, hello wool and hairy mammoths. :-)

Tina's feet are much, much better after trimming. Another month of growth and proper trim and she'll be in great shape. Nina is due for her trim now.

I cut Z's bandage off and decided to leave it off. The wound has healed very nicely and I wanted it to get some air. I'll hose it and clean and rewrap it tomorrow as I think it's healing so nicely under bandaging. I'm hoping it will leave a minimal scar. I then decided it was time to ride my most developed horse! I've missed her.

We had little time since work was so long and late. I tacked her up, did a little ground work and then rode her out to the front pasture towards Gem. She felt great! We picked up right where we left off! I worried that 3 weeks off might mean a step back, but after a few mins on her back I realized that she was the same horse I put away the session before her injury. Her backup is soft and fantastic, her responses are positive and willing, her legs feel strong.

I'll take her to the Pair Pace tomorrow. Decision made. We played in the trailer a bit to be sure she'd be ready to load up and go. She'll do great and it will be better than pushing Gem his first time. I wanted to take him to the dressage show today to feel the air of a show, the excitement and the adrenalin, to see how he'd react. Work was too busy - I couldn't do it. I don't want to take him to perform for me w/o first taking him under zero pressure. I want to do it right w/him and set him up to succeed. I also want to set him up to trust me as much as possible.

I'm learning a ton. Preserve their dignity and put the relationship first and your horse will pay you back ten-fold. I will show Gem in dressage next year. It will be his time to shine.

Before the sun went down, I coached Chrissy on her stuff with Lakota. She warmed him up and then I stayed close for her to mount and dismount. She's working on overcoming fear after going off her horse weeks ago. She got on, practiced lateral flexion, then got off. She got back and did it again. It may seem simple, but she's preserving her own dignity and rebuilding her confidence. It takes the time it takes and I'll help her however I can. She then asked that I ride her horse. I'm sure it's nice to watch him be ridden and I appreciate the opportunity to supple him and remove more brace. He did very nicely for me with serpentines and then simple disengagements at the walk. I just wanted to practice things that would supple him and relax him. He was very amenable and trying hard to do the right thing. He's a great horse - Chrissy's lucky.

Playing with the Geldings

Had a great day with the geldings! I spend so much time with Z and Rain lately - Z as we finish L3 and Rain because she's Kendall's mount and just an all-around fantastic horse. I leased Gemini out for a month or two, but it didn't work out so now he's back in my development program. I have Cowboy and I'm working on helping him be more productive in the human world. He's a great horse, a nice mover, but he's pretty dominant and can easily get his own idea about things. For him, my main goal is to eliminate the brace.

Gemini now lives in a run/stall. I learned recently that when I put Gemini away for a week, all bite marks ceased. All this time, the only horse actually leaving marks on other horses was Gemini! I thought they were biting each other all this time. Wow! So, obviously he's not the benevolent leader I thought and he needs some time alone. It's fine, I'll play with him and develop him and he can live in the large run/stall until I can turn him out in one of the pastures (after the spring grass growth). He's fine and all the horses look better w/o bite marks. :-)

I put him in the arena so he could run and roll as hard as he wanted. He tore off bucking and farting, rolled wildly, then ran some more. He looked awesome. Then he hung out eating the grass growing around the arena's edge and I went for Cowboy. I haven't spent much time with Cowboy lately and he does well whenever we play. I want to help him overcome the brace and I want to help him feel comfortable with humans. He's doing quite well and his displacement behavior is more mild all the time. When he starts to get concerned and "swallows his tongue", I offer him a treat. He's so food motivated, that he snaps right out of his shell!! I groomed him for a while, tacked him up and then we played on the 22'. We now have a nice figure 8 pattern and he's not feeling threatened from the squeeze in the figure 8. He really wanted to eat grass, so we had to have some "discussion" about that. He's welcome to eat grass - but if I ask for something, he'd better pay attention because Phase 4 will come. He figured that out darn quick.

I hopped on and we went around at all gaits. He tried to eat grass and again, I tried to make it clear that it's his choice. What was funny to me was that he would go to eat grass, I would ask for forward and when he decided eating grass was better, I instituted phase 4 by reaching around and spanking his rump. The first time, he was startled and when back to work. The second time, less startled but he went back to to work. The third time, he actually lifted his rump in defiance before going back to work! I had to giggle. The fourth time, he showed defiance, but much more mild. The fifth time, he responded to phase 1 - he didn't move forward but he responded. That time, however, when I raised my arm to phase 4 his rump, he moved out and went back to work! So, I'd call that a phase 2/3. In short order, we had established some rules of engagement. It's his choice to eat grass while I'm asking him for something, but it will have a consequence. I learned some things about him and I believe he learned some things about me. I thought about going in to the arena so that grass wouldn't be such a challenge for our progress and I decided not to. This is one of Cowboy's challenges and it was appropriate to go through these motions so he could figure it out. I have expectations and I respect him enough to let him make the choice. I'm clear and precise in my ask and he has a job to do. By the end, we were doing beautiful trot/canter transitions, figure 8's in the green grass, sidepassing and absolutely no tongue swallowing. He had gotten with the program fairly quickly and I found the perfect place to quit. I'm so much better at making good use of time with the horses - I know he'll be better next time we play. He'll soak on that and so will I.

Then, I wanted to get back to Gemini for some groundwork. Gemini is a fantastic horse for groundwork - he wants to please but he can show some great exhuberance that makes it so much fun! We worked on sideways, lead from Zone 3 (first time for us), change of direction at the trot, maintain gait on the circle, figure 8 (beautifully done by Gem!), and some transitions on the circle. He was having fun and was so locked on to me. Whatever I asked him for, he gave it a hearty try. I was so pleased with him. I am thinking to stay off his back for a while and just get our relationship stronger and his groundwork excellent. Then, I really think he's a restart at this point. His bucking response is alive and well and the 4-6 weeks as a lease horse only reinforced it. I'm going to take him back to L1 riding and get everything solid once we get good strong L3 groundskills going. I think it's a good plan and I'll be spending good time with him this summer. I really love that horse.

I couldn't decide, after Gemini, if I wanted to play with anyone else. I've been reading a book about the Power of Now and starting to think about quieting my mind and finding time to sort of meditate. My mind is overly active and I rarely quiet it and simply enjoy the moment - the details of the moment, really living in the moment. I decided to try to do that with the horses.

The dogs are always with me. I enjoy the dogs, but they can be quite annoying with the horses. UDT can be tough with the dogs. So, I decided to take a chair and sit in a run with the gate closed. This way, the dogs could hang out, I'd be with the horses but not touching them, and I could try to explore the Power of Now. Nina, bless her cute soul, was just aching to be close to me. She was pawing the ground, reaching her feet through the panels, pushing the panels with her chest - she wanted to be closer to me. I scooted my chair closer to the rail and rubbed her face. Ahhh - she felt better and closed her eyes in total relaxation. Zarah did something super surprising. She stood at the gate to the run, looking at me through the gate, ears perked forward towards me. She wanted to come into the run and be with me. Wow! Z and I have really reached a new place.

All the horses had appeared from wherever they were when I setup camp in that run. Rain wanted to be close, but Nina had chased her away. She stood as close as she was comfortable and took a nap. Cowboy wasn't interested in my presence, nor was Abby. But Nina demanded closeness and Z asked politely, can't I come in?

I got up, opened the gate, Z walked in with ease, I closed the gate behind her and went back to my chair. This was upsetting for the dogs, but oh well. Z came over immediately and hung her head over me. She got as close as possible and just hung there. Wow - what a wonderful thing to have a horse feel that way about you, a predator, a human who's often asking for difficult maneuvers. She hung out with me for quite a while, until I had to go in and get back to life. I focused on living in the moment - hearing her breath, focusing on the areas I scratched that made her feel the best, managing Nina's demands for touch all the while, watching Z just feel comfortable and relaxed in my presence. It was maybe one of the most rewarding moments of my horse experiences. I've won Z over. I owe it to Parelli and to my tremendous desire to get to this point. Just an amazing moment. I've achieved something great and anything else I accomplish with Z is icing.

Mourning the death of a good blanket

Today I was reminded that 1) horses are prey animals, 2) if the horse isn't confident about something, don't just get by... FIX IT UP RIGHT! and 3) respect and honor the horse.

It was darn chilly this morning and I've been protecting the filly I board more lately as she's growing and has a tendency lately to drop weight easily. I want to keep her warm and fat and happy. So, I wanted to put a blanket on her - something I've been doing more with her. It protects her from the herd bites, too.

I've known she's not 100% confident about the blanket, but it's always felt like something we manage. Today, she called me a damned fool who should know better. I had it half on, she lost her confidence and started to move her feet. The more she moved, the more the blanket worried her. Next thing I knew, she was full speed ahead and the blanket was getting caught-up in her legs.

I stayed calm, hoping she'd come running to me - which she normally does. She was so worried though, that she was completely running on adrenalin. She would run for the herd, they would run the opposite direction as they wanted no part of her frenzy and couldn't figure out what was attacking her. It was interesting watching that part and seeing the Cowboy was the one who would turn and run back to her to figure out what on earth the deal was.

She ran to me a few times, asking for help, but wasn't calm enough to stop and get that help. Finally, after what seemed like 30 minutes but was probably more like 90 seconds, she stopped and waited for me. I put the halter and lead on her, took off the blanket (which was now complete confetti with pieces and part laying all over the place), and checked her out for injuries. She had a little skin scrape on her hip and another on her muzzle. Otherwise, she was a little tired and sweaty and starting to settle down.

I walked her around, calmed her down more, and put her into a stall and run for the rest of the morning. Now, I have to get her to understand that the blanket isn't going to eat her. We'll have to get past this slowly and right.

Undemanding time...

I'm feeling a little worn out from travel and the wind was just stupid today and cold. So, I took my laptop outside, a blanket and a good outdoor chair and sat in the stall with Z. The dogs were annoying as hell, but eventually I locked them in the barn, out of the stall so Z and I could be spend our undemanding time in peace. It was nice.

Runaway herd

Woke up to a call from my neighbor. My horses had broken through the fence and were roaming the property next door. That neighbor doesn't really like anyone on their property. DOH! I first got Rain and Z, walked them back, then went back out for the other 4. I led Gem and Cowboy home by leading them off the ATV and counting on Nina and Abby to follow.

An hour and a half later, I could finally start work.

My fascinating herd...

For the first time, I've put all 6 horses out together. I've been keeping the 2 geldings separated - keeping 1 in the stall/large run while the other is with the mares and for the most part, Cowboy's had to be the one in lock-down. After all, he's only been here about 2 weeks. These are, for all intensive purposes, Gemini's mares.

Well, yesterday, Cowboy had a 2nd day with the mares while Gemini had to watch. I hate to do it, but I'm trying to be safe as possible and also try to get to a point where all the horses can find there place in a herd together. That seemed to go ok. This morning, no one had a bite mark or a worry. However, there was obviously lots of feet moving outside of the run where Gemini spent the night. The snow is majorly shuffled in that area. Nina seems a little defensive with Cowboy and she's staying pretty close to Abby. Which is very interesting.

So, I decided to let Gemini out and see what would happen. It was amazing and it went like this...

Gemini immediately went to roll. After 12-16 hours in a run, he needed to ROLL! As I stood there, my two mares Rain and Zarah trotted over to me and hung with me. They DO NOT like Cowboy. They both are offended by his very presence. They've obviously been buddying up. When Gemini was let out, they followed him around a bit but what was very interesting was that Nina and Abby followed Cowboy. Do I have 2 bands?

Gemini trotted around with some energy and Z stayed by his side like a faithful soldier. Rain followed him a little, with only a little energy, and then she did an amazing thing. She stopped, turned back to me and stood and stared at me. It was as if she was saying, "Aren't you coming?". Then, I just stood there and waited and about 2 mins later, she came trotting back to me from a whole pasture away!! She left the herd and came enthusiastically back to me! When Z took notice of what she was doing, she followed suit. When Gemini realized his mares were leaving, he jumped on the bandwagon and then all 3 were trotting back to me! Wow.

Cowboy stayed way out there and so did Nina and Abby. He slowly came back from across the pasture and his mares slowly followed him. I'm going to try to sit out there and watch more of the herd behavior after a couple of my work conference calls. I'm fascinated. The good news is that it seems there's little physical unrest - no biting, kicking, rearing. There's definitely antics, but it seems to be harmless at this point.

What a cool display of herd behavior. I love watching and learning about them and how they think and work.

More undemanding, enforcing the bond...

I spent about 45 mins in the pasture with the herd. Everytime Z came near, I gave her a treat and walked away. Occasionally, I would scratch her favorite spots and walk away. I'm curious to see what I'll get today of repairing our bond for a couple days. She was following me in the pasture, like she usually does. But she still decided to head for the far pasture when I first went out yesterday. Hopefully, today will be a little different.

I've also started spending time getting Gemini more confident away from the herd. He spent about 2 hours tied to the rail in front of barn, sometimes able to see the herd, sometimes not. He gets most of his confidence from the herd and I'm starting to focus some attention on building his confidence alone. I've done some reading and have some good ideas of things to do. Linda P. says your horse should be able to stand tied quietly for up to 8 hours. Gemini can not do that today. He calls and calls. Perhaps if we get better at standing tied away from the herd, he'll be more comfortable to trail ride away from them. Whoever buys him will need him to be better in this area.

Today, I want to spend time but life is getting in the way. I'm trying to buck up and roll with it, but definitely feeling frustrated.

Angels in the pasture

Spring is coming. We can all feel it, especially the horses. Today is fairly warm (45 degrees), the air is calm and the Colorado sun is shining bright. My horses are happy. I feed hay in 1-2 flake piles about 10 feet apart along the fence line. I walked out today to see 4 out of 5 horses laying down in a row and 3 of them laying on their chosen pile of hay, eating while they rest. They look especially peaceful and lazy! I love it.