Magic's Own Little World

Review of 2011 and a suspension....

2012-01-05T13:11:00.005Z

So in April we moved to our forever home.

In August the ponios joined us.

I also quit my job, bye bye occupational therapy.

In October we said good night to Max.

And after losing the first foal we chose before he even left his stud, we also finally chose and collected the new baby boy Remus. Sighs of relief all round once he was actually here and settled into the herd.

In November, we collected the other new boy Merlot, taking us to five.

In November, we aquired the rat-removal team of Luna, Tonks and Sirius. Aka the kitty-cats.

In November I also started getting NLP coaching, which is helping me a lot to decide where I want to go from here.

In November I also had a fall from a client's horse, that left me with concussion lasting weeks, very bad neck pain and dodgy balance and eyes, which is on-going. My left pupil is large and my left eye has an annoying habit of wandering off on its own.

CT and MRI scans later, and we find I have degeneration to my neck vertebrae that has been exacerbated by the fall. At least we know now why I have neck pain and why my neck has often seemed a weak spot. Been to see my optician who says that my resting eye placement has changed, and this will make it harder to focus and change my view point after it being in a different place for my whole life.

I now await a consultation from the ophthalmologist to see if anything can be done to improve it, or if it is just time (I hope its not permanent!)

In December, we got Lily, a wirehaired vizsla puppy, aka Echo's new toy.

The best things of 2011 are our open sided barns, living on a south facing slope in a very sheltered spot. Having 43 acres of mainly woodland to hack around meaning we never have to face the outside world again!

My best buy has got to be the haylage bale nets - it has revolutionised their lives, having ad lib food has calmed them all down, they all get on much better and there is so much less bullying and shoving. It also means I don't have to get to them at a specific time as they will run out. The low-maintenance horse keeping strategy just keeps getting better!

The combination of the bale adlib, milder weather and the open sided barns has meant that I haven't rugged yet this winter and they all look loads better for it. Now they will choose to come in from the rain to eat and sleep.

The horses have done very little, but I am now feeling well enough to be doing groundwork with all of them, Magic and I go for little walks at liberty and we are clickering the basics with the others.

I have a lot to look forward to in 2012, but mainly I want to get well again so I can spend time with the ponios and get them back into work. We have put in for planning for an arena, and then hopefully sometime this year or next we will also get the barn replaced.

My sight has meant that I am spending less and less time on the computer, its hard to read in any form and I am finding less time spent here is an improvement. I

So for the meantime, I am suspending service on the blog. I'm sure it will be back, but for now I feel that I don't need to rub it to myself in how little I am managing to do with the boys.

So for now, a happy 2012 to all, I hope all your dreams come true this year!

Balance and boredom.

2011-12-16T10:00:00.003Z

CT scan was clear, phew. So for all those who doubted it, my brain is normal, tada!!

Dr thinks the eye issue and the tingly hands are due to nerves being pinched in my neck. He says this will be due to inflammation and I'm to rest and be patient. And not become obsessive that I am fine and its all pscyhosomatic. He's referred me to opthamologist as well as the eye thing is a bit odd.

I can't really move my neck so to turn I twist at the waist. This has limitations, as you can imagine. I hadn't really noticed how much I am protecting it until someone pointed it out.

It makes working with the horses challenging, and my lack of depth perception also makes me a bit of a space cadet as if they move their head fast I can't get out of the way as am not quite sure where they/I am in space. All a bit weird.

So apart from dizziness when move my neck (ie when I move my head in relation to my neck, I'm not too bad as long as neck and head stay stuck together) and violent neck ache which seems to be getting worse not better, I'm fine. So sitting still is necessary, but it hurts my neck as no resting place is comfortable. So I get up and do stuff, and that doesn't help.

Vicious circle anyone??!

On the horse front, they are loving the big bale haynet. Everyone gets a turn, although Merlot and Magic do monopolise it rather. Everyone is loads calmer, there is no rush when they see me that its feeding time. Its all very civilised. It looks like I will end up using slightly more than a bale a week, but its worth it to have chilled horses.

They are still un-rugged and are managing fine. I swear Dan is actually doing better without one. I know I usually find he looks worse (top line wise) once he wears a rug, so I'm holding out as long as possible. They have access to two 15m2 barns, so if they want out of the weather, they can.

But another interesting phenomenon is that they seem to CHOOSE to stand out in the rain, at least some of the time. I know Aero has always done it, but today I spotted Remus snoozing in the rain.... I went out to check he was ok - threw him some haylage to get him to come in, he came, in, sniffed at it and went back out to sleep in the rain.

I've just gone back out now and he, Aero and Dan are in eating and Magic and Merlot are out sleeping in the rain in the yard. How weird. I struggle so much with the concept that the rain won't melt them, and here they are CHOOSING to stand in it. Bonkers.

Of course, I know now that if/when any of them do get rugged, it will be to easy my worries, rather than because they NEED them!

Not a lot going on. Remus has had his rug on properly, done up and walked around in it, absolutely no reaction at all. So he is ready in case he does ever need it, phew!

Magic and I have been going for more little walks, him at liberty or in a headcollar (no lead rope). Last time we did quite a nice round trip in the top wood.

Merlot gets similar, and is really like walking a dog. He doesn't get yet that he's supposed to be walking WITH me, he thinks he should follow. Until we turn for home when he is more than happy to walk alongside!

And, to combat the boredom of my enforced rest, we picked up our latest (and hopefully last!) edition to the family on Friday. A wirehaired vizsla puppy, she is 12wks and we have named her Lily. Pics here.... http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150431922116434.365460.577541433&type=1&l=b8e7ed0475

She is going to be the Echo-goes-a-hunting antidote..... we hope!!!

So if I'm not blogging much at the moment, its because I'm not actually resting, I am at the beck and call of an Echo, a Lily, and 3 kittens! Good job the horses and chickens are relatively self sufficient now!!

Acceptance

2011-12-11T17:15:00.003Z

I have downloaded one of Ben Hart's ebooks "Elements of Horsemanship" - and although I am not able to read much, I can do a paragraph a day. So first was Acceptance. I think I will probably blog my thoughts as it helps to write them down.

He says acceptance is not the same as tolerance. Acceptance means you accept the person/animal for who they are, in entirety. Tolerance means you could be suppressing resentment or getting frustrated with them. He ends by saying "when you are with your horse, do you accept them totally or do you accept the good and only tolerate the bad."

Ouch. Hit home for me big style. And there I was all smugness thinking how far I have come. But its true. I was still not accepting Magic and his "OMG there's a dragon" behaviours, I was just tolerating and getting frustrated underneath.

So the last few days I have stuck to our leading, he has had headcollar on (mainly to continue to un-poison in and to associate it with good stuff). We have been for a few walks, just round to the schooling area and home, but we have had no stickiness, he has just walked with me, with floppy forward ish ears. I have to C/T at this point, as if I leave it too long he gets tense and into pose and all tight.... but we are getting better and better, and I ask for head lower if he gets into pose and can't get out.

Then yesterday we ventured into the wood. He got further into the ride than ever before, but then got stuck. So I held out my fist as a target and we got a bit further, but then he got all eyes-on-stalks and wouldn't come any further. So I turned back and as soon as he realised I was coming back to him he walked a bit towards me. Then we turned for home and he was totally with me again. Its the old adage of, "set them free, if they come back they are yours". I really really need to keep setting him free and letting him know there is NO pressure on him to come with me, I only want him to come if it is his free choice.

And he is so much friendlier. Since we have been "chatting" from our NLP, I have been spending more quality time just scritching him, standing and chatting whilst he eats and he seems a lot less up energy that it is all about the clicker. So all good stuff for a Mr Magic.

Meanwhile, when it got really windy yesterday, they all left the yard just as I was going to play with Remus. So, everyone else left, and Remus stood with me in the yard (with no other horses in sight, in fact, two had GALLOPED down the field) and had his rug on from both sides, on fully, and folded back and thrown back on, without moving a muscle (except to reach round and target it - I might regret that if he becomes a serial rug trasher!!). I was very proud mum. I didn't have headcollar on as didn't want to restrain him if he suddenly realised he was alone and needed to leave. He truly is one cool little dude!

Then he was a bit close to the fence, so I started to teach him to move over - hand on shoulder, move away C/T, hand on hip, move hip away, C/T. He got it in about 2 clicks, oh how easy it is when we haven't poisoned every darn thing!!!

And today, although I did no work with any of them, I realised that having felt like I had loads I needed to teach Remus early on, I now have hardly anything....

Rugs - check

Feet - check

Poulticing - check

Leading - check

Ok alone - check

Grooming - check

No mugging - check

Moving away from hand pressure - check

:-)

Then yesterday, Merlot and I also went for a walk. We went all the way into the wood, past a few turns for home and although he got a bit sticky, he still came (again, headcollar on but no leadrope, just hand target if he didn't move off when I did).

Then we turned for home and he walked off ahead of me in a bit of a tense, ooh, something scary behind me way. So I let him go, called him, which got a look around, but not a return. So I walked after him and he stopped at the edge of the wood waiting for me and we came home together. Again, I wanted him to have to opportunity to leave, so he realised he actually wanted to stay.

Then of course, last night it was a huge gale and torrential rain. I went out at 10pm and they were all in the field, so gave them some more haylage (unrequired really, but got them into the dry) and checked they were all ok. All 5 unrugged as yet, and even Dan had dry hair under the wet top coat (my benchmark for if a rug is needed). They were all warm, and apart from being a bit on edge (Magic checking my acceptance of his protector status!!) they were happy as pigs in poo.

I honestly think they are managing so much better this year unrugged. I hate it when I hear the wind and rain, but they are warmer and less wet - if I'd have rugged Dan he would have been wet down his neck/shoulders where it ran through inside rug and he would probably have been wet to skin. This way he still had fluffed up a bit so the bottom was dry. Remus's coat, who is the other one I keep a close eye on, is amazing. It goes totally rats tails on top, yet part it and its bone dry just beyond the top. And he's toasty warm.

So here's to leaving rugs off as long as possible!

Then today, I went out at lunchtime and found all FIVE lying down asleep, right next to the bridleway. Even Dan who appears to think if its not a man made bed its not for sleeps. I went and got camera and by the time I got back, Dan had realised his mistake and got up! Sneak!!

So, I accept the weather as well as accepting EVERYTHING about my wonderful boys.

I should be in Germany...

2011-12-09T15:46:00.002Z

But I've been grounded as its a risk to fly in case I have a bleed in the brain. Nice. So everyone else went to the ball without Cinderella.

On the plus side, they got up at 3.45 and I didn't have to, so rough with the smooth and all that!

Magic - has totally turned a corner with the leading at liberty thing. This morning we managed a wander around the top paddock, then this afternoon, we went out of the yard and out to the wood. We would have done the first little loop but I got spacey so we had to come back. He was absolutely perfect, no stickiness at all, but he is still a bit high energy, I need to keep doing this until he totally understands there is no wrong answer!

Merlot - similar to Magic with the leading, he is so pleased to be asked to do something, that he is catching on really quickly. The difference is that there isn't the same level of trust - Magic and I have seen a lot of things together, faced a lot of tigers and lived to tell the tale. So although in some ways this is our downfall because I have poisoned so much, we still underneath it all trust that we each want the other to survive with us!

Merlot doesn't yet trust me when things get scary (in his opinion) so we have worked over the last few days on - come with me, lead alongside me, but leave if you need to - all that will happen is no treat, and possibly end of session. As soon as he realised he had a choice, and didn't HAVE to come with me, he has been a different person!

Remus - we have progressed to rug on completely if put on from the right side, from the left it is still a little bit worrying just having it over his front half (when the front straps swing down I think). So we are still working on it. He is learning to be so brave. "If I stand here while the thing is put on, I get a treat". Sometimes, he tries to target it once its on him. Cue the spotty stripey baby turning himself into a pretzel!

Then this afternoon, Echo went off for a wander so Remus and I went to see if we could find her, we walked all the way to the wood, and then had a graze on the return journey. He is absolutely fine about leaving everyone, as long as he has his person :-)

Oh, and Echo thinks he's a big dog - she greets him every morning, whereas she ignores all the others. And if he's lying down, she always wants to go and pester him!!

The new hay bale net is working really well. I've seen almost four together eating (Magic, Merlot, Dan, Remus). But generally 2 or three works pretty well. The only combination that hasn't happened yet is Merlot and Aero. Dan/Aero/Magic, or Dan/Remus/ Aero, or Dan/Magic/Merlot or Merlot/Remus/Magic are all possibles. Basically, if Dan and Magic and Merlot are all on it at once, its like a merry go round - Dan pushes Magic around, Magic pushes Merlot around, Merlot pushes Dan around.... so they have learnt NOT to try to push each other off, as it rebounds on them, perfect!

Merlot and Remus were there together for a long while this morning, so I'm happy that everyone gets a go on it. Considering I moved it on Wednes though, they are definitely eating it more slowly (evil cackle). They are still getting the tubs filled too, but gradually Magic and Merlot especially are choosing the bale net, but that might be because its a nicer bale.

It won't work so well if the next bale off the pile has any mould on it.... I need some way of knowing which are "good" bales to go in the net, and which need filtering so can go in the tubs.

Clash of the Titans

2011-12-08T17:10:00.001Z

Bay horse stylee....

And some random photos....

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150412958926434.363090.577541433&type=1&l=7334f91691

EMRT

2011-12-07T19:00:00.002Z

Dan - tight near hind and off fore. But over all, very good, loads better. Doesn't need another until he has another mishap!

Aero - really really pleased, does move a little tight behind which she feels is justifiable at 18, but so much better than ever and nothing much to report.

Magic - baaaad :-( tight all down his left side. Left shoulder, left hip, behind saddle. I did say, it can't be riding as he hasn't done any! Would explain why I have been watching him in the field and thinking something NQR (not quite right).

Merlot - good, loads better than last time she saw him (over a year ago), has changed and got a top line!

Remus - has an abscess, but being a clever boalie has managed to get it to become a lump on his coronet that I am now poulticing. He is pretty sound again even though it hasn't popped yet. He "helped" with treatments by licking the stool, the clip board, Sue, me, then got bored and started to try to pull his rug off the fence where I had left it to desensitise him!

It worked because tonight after putting his poultice on we did 5 mins towards rugging and got to being able to put rug on him (not opened out). Previous sessions have involved bigger and bigger towels, and me making more and more big movements throwing him at him and rubbing him all over. Bovvered? Me? Clever pony.

Magic - leading. Oh, he is being such clever boy. We can now walk wherever, me with inside hand on his shoulder, and my other hand in front to get us started. I've never felt so connected to him, and so in tune with each other. And he is being a saint whilst I am NQR myself.

NLP is Magic!

2011-12-02T09:27:00.002Z

I've been having some NLP sessions and I have to say they are really helping.

So far we have worked on and improved the following:

Feeling pressured/judged

Anxiety about situations where there are others (social, or competing, anything really)

Control issues

Not knowing where I am "going" aka what I want to do when I grow up!

I have cried most sessions, in a releasing kind of way. Yesterday's we ended up working on my relationship with Magic. I think its going to really help how we are with each other (peas in a pod that we are) and where we, as a partnership, want to go from here.

So this morning I continued our new leading routine. He came to the gate, I let him through, but didn't put headcollar or anything on. We did target the fist until the loop was clean, then I stepped away and asked him to do it again so he had to walk towards me. By the end of the session he was walking along with me, and I was C/T for this, so he would stop for his treat, then we could have another go. We went along the track to the schooling area and back. Only when we turned for home did his ears go a bit less "happy". So I used that as my cue that I needed to take smaller steps (literally) and go back to target the fist until he wasn't showing the tension.

The great thing was that he was happy to go back into the yard with the others - he did so when I opened the gate, with his ears forward. Often, he seems unhappy that a session has ended, but today it felt like I was able to keep tension out of him for the whole time. Maybe because the NLP has helped me take the pressure off both of us.

I remember blogging about "happy faces" and ears forward, and saying I wasn't sure I believed it was the right thing to do, but could see valid reasons for doing it AND not doing it. And that I experimented a bit, but never really "got" anywhere. Well now, the deal is that when Magic has his ears too forward he is "lal-la-ing", when they are further back than half way, he is in conflict/I've chunked to far. Anywhere else and we are good to go.

Against previous thoughts, I am going to let him la-la as much as he needs to - as its all information - if he is la-la-ing and I don't know why - I have to ask myself is it him trying to "leave" the situation? What am I doing that could make him feel the need to leave? What can I do to make him want to stay with me, rather than return to his herd and gallop them down the field "out of danger"? Ditto with the tension face - how can I split what I am asking down into smaller components, and if I do that, does he get back to happy Magic?

Now I can see where we are going with this, I can't believe I was able to suppress my knowledge of his tension around leading for so long. I've known its there, but I have tried to "fix" it with a higher rate of reinforcement, but still doing the same thing, or even by chunking up to the next behaviour when his FEELINGS around ground work were going to restrict what we could do. Whereas I needed to split the behaviour down even further to find where the "sticky" spot was.

It really is a learning curve this stuff, and I honestly don't think you ever stop learning. Good job Magic is such a great, patient teacher, huh?!

Back to the drawing board

2011-11-29T17:16:00.003Z

Apologies for tardiness in blogging. Not feeling the love for computer at the moment!

I have finally figured out the issue with wwylm for Magic - and it was Remus and Merlot who showed me. Remus leads beautifully, moving off when I step off (because he has learned that to do so earns a click, and he WANTS to be with me as poking mother for treats is a great game!)

Merlot, because he is a sticky leader - if I block him in my body, or don't have the right intention, then he will freeze. If I go and flow, then he leads.

But Magic, if he doesn't feel he can go somewhere, then that is it. Yesterday, we went to the oak trees and played a game of stand on your mat, leave the mat when I call (C/T), go push the big green ball (C/T), go back to your mat.

Magic is only confident sometimes. I want him to be like Remus, who is confident when he is with ME. When Magic is worried, if there is a mat around, he will go to the mat. If that means going away from me that is fine. So I think me on the ground = still poisoned, even if less so than before.

I think this makes it even clearer to me that I need to get clean loops, and I need to NOT chunk up behaviours until each loop is clean. If that means going right back to basics, then so be it.

Merlot has taught me that this doesn't have to be the case with everyone! Merlot is happy to do nearly anything, and we are already covering the poisoned stuff up by over riding it with +R. And I am happy to do this with him. Clarity of -R releases, combined with plenty of +R and ensuring we have some free shaping seems to be working well.

So for me and Magic, we are going back to scratch AGAIN. I might feel I have done this before, but if I haven't yet managed to un-poison the biggest poisoned cue (me!) then we ain't fixed it yet!

And it's good time to do it, because I am really not right. I rode Merlot with P and Dan on Sunday. I didn't feel up to it but it was a lovely sunny day, and I don't often have a nanny at the mo. I felt really weird. My neck was aching, my balance was shot, and it was the first time I thought I actually don't want to ride. Normally if I'm told not to ride then the contrary part of me wants to get on and ride straight away!

So its steps back for everyone else too, but because of me, not them.

Remus and I have got to the point of me throwing the towel on/off him whilst he's loose, and him targetting it where-ever he can, and even standing on it (the start of mat work!). But as soon as I went to get his rug, he walked away. Oops. I have managed to poison that one then. Chunking is sooooo bad.

Today he had the vet for his second vaccs, he was very good. We also had the dentist so he got to meet her. He was quite jumpy around her, but she did move her hands quite quickly. It made me see that its no good me being all softly softly, as I still need other professionals to deal with them from time to time, so Remus is going to have to learn that other people don't necessarily follow my criteria of approach, but that he is still safe, despite this.

So I need to practice with him first, then start getting random people to approach him and touch him when he is ready for them to do so. This is easier to stage manage than a professional coming in with a job to do. Then we can get him even more used to vet/dentist etc.

Aero had his teeth done, using the under-the-tongue sedative, which worked well on him. Then vet sedated Magic. Usually he has enough to floor a rhino. Vet listened to his heart (Magic was high energy at the time due to proximity of vet!) and declared that his heart rate wasn't too bad. So I did a bit of head lowering, and then vet put intravenous sedative in. Magic reacted to the needle, and tried to leave, but got C/T for staying, and then back to head lower before he fell asleep.

He had his teeth done in about 20mins. It was the best he'd ever been, doped, but aware, not falling over drunk, AND he wasn't battling the dentist like he always has done.

I was worried as I hate making him do things he doesn't want to, but it made me see what impact my tension has on him (I wasn't as am too spacey to be) and how much all round "good" the clicker training has done him. He was even targetting the dentist and her kit whilst she was doing Aero!

So I am hugely pleased and hugely relieved, and its all over again for another year! Yey!

Now we have McTimoney on Friday (which he also hates!) and then EMRT next Wednes, which he loves. Rough with the smooth Magic!

A little "me" update

2011-11-24T19:14:00.003Z

Dizziness still in evidence, along with headache, neckache and occasional nausea.

Went back to chiro who was concerned that the dizziness isn't better after the last treatment (had hoped it was due to my neck/jaw being wonky as). She said my neck is much better, but jaw still needed another go. After she had manipulated it, she looked at me and said my left pupil was blown. I said, doesn't surprise me, I don't think they have ever quite got back to "equal" with the left one always being bigger than the right. Cue one very concerned chiro! I told her I was seeing GP this evening as I have been nagged to death by everyone, and I haven't been made to feel like a hypochondriac by a GP for at least two years so I must be due a visit about now.

Went to GP and he said my pupils were normal - although he only looked at them in isolation. He said they reacted to light normally..... yes, but what if they aren't the same size in the first place???

He has given me vertigo meds and booked me for a CT scan. He thinks the vertigo meds should fix it as he believes it is coming from my neck, but felt I should have the scan as well.

I have actually been feeling worse the last few days, I wake up feeling ok (once the room has stabilised) and manage to do morning yards, but by lunchtime I'm fading fast with dizziness, headache and fatigue.

I rode Merlot yesterday and we went round a corner schooling a little earlier than I was intending and it just made me realise that there ain't much balance there at all at the mo, I could have easily kept going in straight line. Weird for someone who has always had pretty good balance. Good job I'm only riding my sensible boys and can slide off if necessary!

I just hope there is "something" fixable. The thought of having vertigo on and off now is not a good mix with riding is it. Driving in the dark is a virtual no-no as it is.

Fingers crossed!

Is this getting boring yet?

2011-11-21T15:58:00.001Z

I mean the short run down aka training diary? I seem to be getting more done, but less time to blog about it. My head isn't doing so well at sitting in front of a computer either, so it maybe that less is more for the time being!

Merlot

Wednes - hacked with a friend who took Aero. Merlot was his usual evil self whenever Aero came within range (or whenever Merlot got within range of Aero either!). But otherwise he was perfect.

Thurs - dogs chased a muntjac around the bottom wood, lots of screaming = very excited horses. I went for an abortive hack in the gathering dusk and its the first time I've felt that he really MIGHT leave the building if pushed. I just kept him sub threshold and got him home by head lowering.

Fri - Rode him in their paddock, to test the reactiveness with other horses around. They were all out there grazing, and we did have a few drifts through the shoulder, end up close to horses and then try backing into them threateningly when asked to move forward. I stage managed it a bit and used hip flips, and he got progressively better through the session until he was schooling around Magic, but on the inside of the others.

Saturday - schooled again, worked on whether we can get forwards without all the evil faces and head push back to start with. We started in a better place, but we still had to work through the evils. I am trying to be very clear that I will not escalate the pressure, and he fairly quickly realises that a) I'm not going to fight him and b) I'm going to bore him into moving! Aero "helped" by being stood in the field..... we managed to ignore him until at the end I went and walked relatively close to C/T him when he managed to ignore him even then.

Sunday - short ridden session working on head lower and releasing in walk (easy) and trot (hard). But, forwards was loads better - no crankiness in any paces, although he was a bit behind the leg to start with, we didn't have head up/push back/ears up nostrils. Result!

Today - Got on in yard and let him take me for a hack. He went straight up the main ride and then left and followed the fence line along until we were back in the garden. I have moved the hens and we now have a small 25m square under the oak trees, so we schooled there for a bit. We started with him trying to drift through the shoulder to go back to the wood (away from home!)... BUT we had head lower in walk and trot straight away. PLUS we had no ears, and not even the slightest back off from the leg - he was straight off a voice aid with a light touch of the leg. Soooo pleased with him. Even canters were lovely first go. Think we are really getting somewhere ;-)

Magic

Saturday - schooled him in their paddock as a comparison to Merlot. He was lovely and forward, but not too forward. Still keen to trot on left rein, but not in a stressed way. Trot loads more rideable. The only thing is he is still offering too much neck flexion, so we sometimes lose straightness and a "back to sit on" as it slides away through the shoulder. Tis easy to correct though. Even canter only require a cursory head swizzle. We literally did w,t,c each way and quit. Clever boy! Short and sweet is fine!

Sunday - same as above really, better straightness and no head swizzles, and a great calmness about him - never really had before when going round in circles. Also worked on downward trans because I have cued it, not clicked it!

Today - did the same as Merlot - got on and let him take me where he wanted. He chose to go straight out the yard (forwards training seems to be working) and left and left again to end up in our new schooling area under the oak trees. He did go for a good rummage around as the place looks different without the hen fence.... then we did walk, trot and canter on each rein and honestly it was the best yet. Left rein (where he would normally bulge out through outside shoulder) felt amazing. Canter was fantastic both ways, almost walk speed but really three time. Loving it! Clever boy. Oh, and he was a bit unimpressed to go back in!!! ;-)

Remus

Picking feet up - I found I had started to use more pressure on his fetlock, so to stop myself I used the schooling whip to touch him instead. He is a very fast learner, and generalised the concept so I could touch with stick then hold foot with hand. He doesn't always see why he should hold his foot up for long, but he is getting loads better.

Towel - targetting it, and then standing loose and letting me bring it to his shoulder and then rub him all over and approach from both sides with it.

Leading - today we went for a walk out of the yard, down the track and to the schooling area. He was really good, a bit wide eyed but perfectly happy to be with me not the others. Even when someone (I think Aero) whinnied for him he didn't reply! Got to get better at leading him from the right as well as the left, but he is getting it really fast, its more about me not being lazy and remembering to train EVERYTHING from both sides. He's much better about leading with me, not following me now, although he will still follow if he thinks something is scary.

We need to do lots more touching things, targets, goblins, as he doesn't generalise that yet unless it is something I am holding. I remember how long its taken Echo to realise that she can still target things even if they are not on the end of my hand though!

Aero

Simon did a head lower, leading and playing with the big green ball session on Saturday. Aero is a fantastic footballer as he will kick or push the ball really far! Simon had to ask me if I'd trained him.... errr, no!

Then today I began "can I touch your face" because for a very well mannered person, he HATES you touching his face, or holding his nose, even if your hand is just rested lightly. So I had to start on his neck and work to his head. I also had to let him realise that he had no head collar on and if he wanted to lift his head or move it away, he COULD, but it wouldn't earn a treat until he let me touch him. I had to break it down as this is really quite poisoned (probably hence the head tossing thing he used to do when stressed - he knows no one could hang onto his face whilst he's doing that!)

Meanwhile, everyone has been wormed. Remus still had worms in his droppings 2 weeks after he had pramox at stud, so he has now had a panacur and will get an equest with the others in Dec. Merlot, Magic and Aero had equitape and will get equest in Dec. Dan had pramox and doesn't need equest until Feb.

All sorts of updates....

2011-11-15T13:16:00.003Z

Merlot - went for a treatment with Gavin Schofield on Thurs, who has treated him for the last year or so. Very interesting, Merlot is tight behind the saddle (an old issue) but this is improving. He thinks the variety of hills, different surfaces, odd cambers, and happy hacking will really help him. Merlot really worked during his treatment, lots of back lifts, yawning and stretches. I rode him on Sunday and we got canter without any ears, and without that odd "not connected to his feet" feeling. So hopefully we are even more on track now. He was also excellent as Echo was having an "under your feet" day, and on the way back the others galloped up the field and got Dan high energy. I'm not sure Merlot even knows what high energy IS!

Then today we went solo hacking, he had one moment where he thought he didn't want to go and just kept bananaing a slightly different direction. But C/T for going the right way soon swung him! He did the hills really well, marching up and down but not trying to jog. We had two canters, one in the field and one up a ride. He feels loads better.

Around the cones and we get really nice canter, and excellent trot, but apparently trot has a limit on it - there is a spot on the circle on the right rein where he downs tools! So we have a training hole still there, but generally forwards is not a problem like it was.

We got back to the yard and started to train stand on the mat - then I can use go to his mat to help forwards. He got it in two attempts, and was then standing almost on his own feet to be stood on the mat!

Magic - I had a great talk to Hannah Dawson (http://www.hannahdawsonequine.co.uk/) at YHL about motivating horses you know well and have trained for a long time. It gave me loads to think about and made me even more determined to strip things back further and try to make the +R bigger than the previous -R.

Saturday I didn't have time to do anything with him - but he was standing at the gate trying to get my attention as I left for YHL! Sunday, he was determined it was his go, so he came to be ridden with P and Dan, even though the plan had been to take Merlot. He was very forward and let out and into the wood, and took the furthest path along the boundary. Then we saw people walking in the next wood and he went into plant mode, with his heart beating so hard it was MOVING me. Dan took over, and we did a lap of the wood and took him home to collect Merlot instead. So I definitely still need a way to get calm when he believes there is danger.... me telling him there is no danger is as much use as a chocolate teapot. He has to believe it himself. So more softly softly solo hacking where we can get off and head lower if necessary is probably on the cards.

Yesterday, he came through and I tacked up, and went and stood on mounting block and waited. As soon as he looked my way, C/T. By the end he was capturing the saddle nicely. If I had led him to the mounting block, he would have done capture the saddle with me as that's how I trained it. Now I am training that once I am on the mounting block with my hands out, wherever he is, he should come and join me.

So today, I tacked up and went to the mounting block. He was facing the other way right by the gate, and he turned and brought the saddle all the way to me in one go! I got on, my goal to literally C/T any forward step that took us away from home. I wasn't expecting much, but we got to the cones having done a lap of the farmyard sniffing all the goblins first. We saw a runner in the other wood in the distance, and his head came up, but he was not stressed and walked on again fine.

So more of the same this week I think, increasing his motivation without me having to "do" anything to get it.

Remus - C/T for targetting rug in my hand. Then put rug on floor and C/T for any look towards it. Very quickly he was able to walk around it closely. I then picked rug back up and its still ok. Then did more lift the feet... which is going well, he has realised he needs to stabilise himself on the other three before giving me the 4th. Leading is really good, and don't mug me seems to have got fixed (although it doesn't apply to P so have told her she may have to play don't mug me with him too!)

Aero - Simon did some head lowering, and some cleaning up the food delivery loop, as well as starting the whole graze/don't graze work. Then yesterday he was desperate for a session as the mat was out, so he got a first go on the podium, which is good for him as it means we can get an extra inch or so of head lower with his front feet off the floor but his nose still reaching to the floor.

Finally I moved the electric fence yesterday so they have loads more grass. And this is the sight from our kitchen window this morning!

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150369946821434.358503.577541433&type=3&l=5c6394cb25

But barely

2011-11-10T11:01:00.002Z

I'm not sure what's up with me but I am still dizzy and wobbly and nauseous if I eat. So not much eating going on round here. So the boys are having a quiet week.

Vet came for vaccs and Magic was very brave. He also had bute before and after and did not have too bad a reaction. Phew.

To catch up, Magic has had a few short sessions of mat, and we introduced a podium as we found something that would work as one. He started off a bit snorty, but stood on it in about four steps. Then was mega chuffed with himself and kept dragging me back to it. Cute!

We have done a few short sessions of liberty leading, and I am just working on trying to keep him soft and not escalating energy. I really want to get back on him, but with his vaccs he's had time off so it probably won't be til next week now. Maybe not a bad thing with my lack of balance anyway!

Merlot has taken me for a couple of hacks, yesterday we ventured to get canter whilst hacking, and he did really well. He feels a bit "odd" in canter - like he isn't confident to put his feet to the floor, but that might be because the going is more slippy/uneven than he is used to. I really need to take him to an arena and work him there to find out a bit more. He did canter round the cones though and that didn't feel the same, so maybe it is the surface.

He has perfected don't mug me, and even the "look away as I get treat" so he doesn't try to get to treat before I am ready. He is such a quick learner, and he WANTS to learn.

Remus has done some don't mug me sessions, and has got the look away. He doesn't seem to see the point in targetting, but we will keep doing a little bit to see if we can get the light to come on. He knows to pick up his front feet when I ask, but isn't holding them for me yet. He was very good with the vet, who had a feel of his umbilical to check for hernia etc, he just walked in a circle around me if he needed to, but never felt like he had to leave.

Meanwhile Simon decided to teach Aero to play football, so has decreed that everyone needs to learn so they can play 5 a side! And immediately said "Magic in goal, he can just fill it". Cheeky swine.

So that got us talking about their strengths and where they should play...

I know nothing about football, so we discussed their strengths, and Simon came up with their position....

Dan - fastest = wing
Remus - good at going round horses to get out the way, good manoeuvring = center forward
Merlot - consistent, slower to react, steady = midfield/defence and probably capt
Aero - fast, but gets carried away = striker (mainly because Simon insisted!!)
Magic - quick reactions - will stand his ground = Defence/goalie

Simon said he can't be up front as he will probably be in the next county as soon as the whistle is blown. Again, the cheek of him!

Finding a team to play against might be more of a challenge - I'm thinking it will be like the Top Gear football challenges - but for ponies instead of cars! We already have the big green ball and Magic's at an advantage as he already plays with it!

Back in the land of the living

2011-11-06T16:17:00.002Z

Or at least, almost. It seems I just lost 48 hours!

But I'm back now, in spirit if not in body quite yet. Got P to nanny me out on a hack this morning as still feeling very dizzy and weak. I was in two minds whether to go, as Simon had done all the work this morning and I still didn't feel up to much. But I trust Merlot already, and with a friend I thought the fresh air would do me good. Plus Simon said its going to be vile tomorrow, and that swung it!

Merlot twigged that you can head lower when I'm in the saddle - coooool. Except he has narrow shoulders so it doesn't leave much in front of you! We met Simon with the tractor and trailer on the ride in the wood, and he walked up and sniffed it (following Dan's lead!) and walked past it totally unphased.

He was foot perfect on the hack, and apart from 2 ears back moments he never looked like stuggling with Dan in his space either. When we got back to the cones, Simon was chainsawing a little way away, but that wasn't worth a giraffe impression either, in fact he wanted to stay with the cones! So we did a tiny amount of transitions work - basically, walk/one step trot with head at wither height/C/halt, then we also did canter, so walk/ask for canter/break to canter/C/halt/treat. He got so good that he was doing gorgeous halt to canter trans. He feels amazing. And he is soooo smooth.

I found that whilst on a horse I was fine because my head is still. It is when I am off horse and doing anything that I am dizzy because my head is moving.

Magic got a bit of pilates, and a bit of building duration in head lower. Then it was time for the sickly one's rest.

Then this afternoon Simon did some clicker with Aero, and I got Remus out and did a bit more leading - which is still rather more like following at the moment. Although he does step as I run the hand down the rope, so he is getting it. We had a frustrating don't mug me session as he has worked out where the treats come from, but hasn't yet worked out that he never gets one straight from there! He doesn't give me many moments to click yet!

Then Magic and I went out to de-poison WWYLM. I'm now sure I poisoned it by using -R as well as +R... even though the -R was only the rope handling, my rope handling wasn't good enough AND he is far too sensitive to even the direction of my body. So we went at liberty again, and we did C/T for ears forward as well as for good WWYLM. He is loads more calm and soft about it, and I intend to do loads more like this and "load the training scales in favour of the +R rather than the -R" to make it a pleasant experience for him.

Who was it who said, just because you are using +R doesn't mean the horse is having a nice experience :-(

So it pays to keep evaluating behaviour, and our own gut feelings - I've known for a while that I felt uncomfortable doing WWYLM with him and now I think I've figured out why - I don't get those feelings with the other horses, only Magic, so it may be that I've been unintentionally using too powerful aversives with him, but that the same things aren't as aversive to the others.

This whole training thing is one biiiig minefield.

Feeble.

2011-11-04T17:10:00.002Z

Me. Not helped by the entire summers rain falling on us today.

Poo picked in torrential rain this morning, got to test my full waterproof gear out fully, and am pleased to report it is the business!

I think all the locals might have been right... we have rather wet land here! Although, at the moment all the water is sitting on top of it. The lake is filling nicely. I think we might be able to put a boat on it by Christmas at this rate!!

By the time Mum arrived to ride, the sun was shining, so we decided to go for it. I am slightly more mobile than yesterday, but with a stiffer neck and back, so it was still a case of clamber aboard the jolly ship Merlot and point him in the right direction!

He was better than ever, really good about Aero, we even managed to walk together along some rides. He led mostly, but when behind was fine (apart from one blip where Aero stopped and Merlot couldn't resist trying to land his teeth on Aero's bum!)

We did quite a few figure of eights in the top wood, and on the last lap, he stopped as I turned him away from home again, and did his giraffe impression looking back at me - he is practically eyeball to eyeball with me! Makes giving him the treat easy, but does make me giggle when he stops when I haven't asked for it. His look said "you do realise that this is the WRONG WAY and the ground is SLIPPY and it is DIFFICULT for a poncy warmplod to walk on?" Yep, says I.... and off he tootles. I think he thinks I'm mad, but goodness a bit of uneven ground, slippy ground and deeper going doesn't half get him using his back in a good way :-)

Mum even commented on how surprised she was that he doesn't carry his head high when being ridden. No, I said, its just his periscope mode!!

Then Magic did a bit of pilates, hind feet on the mat, and liberty leading. He only wandered off to graze ONCE, and came straight back when he realised I was walking off. I have decided that I need to get more calmness into his ground work. And I am prepared to back off other criteria until we get it. We have it when I am riding now, but for some reason, the groundwork isn't quite there. He is being very good at slowing down to stay with me though, and matching my strides. So there is loads to like.

Then Merlot had a brief "don't mug me" session. He does pick things up fast!

Remus just got some really good scritches, as his coat had dried in rats tails this morning, so I scritched it fluffy again. He is so mega cute. Mum and I did say its a toss up at the moment if he's going to grow up to be stunning or just plain kooky. Either way, he's gonna be a star in my eyes!

Speaking of which, Mum left me with a months supply of H&Hs, and what should I find in one? The write up of the KNN grading, where he got best foal, so he is in H&H already!! Good, so now we don't have to worry about getting there again any time soon! ;-)

And there was a short mention in the vet page of all places, of the research about how +R was more effective than -R for training. Wow. H&H, one day you may actually get with the times!!!

Aching but happy

2011-11-03T12:17:00.002Z

Merlot was a star today. It was windy. The others were high energy. He stood in the yard and head lowered and had tack on, and stood at the block whilst I half climbed, half crawled up him to get onto the block and then onto him.

Thank goodness once I was on, the only thing that hurt was my head and neck. My back was less painful on board, and my foot far less so as non-weight-bearing.

He took me out to the cones, and the wind in the trees was scary, but he stayed calm. We did walking each way, and worked on our trot transitions. We didn't work on trot for long as to rise hurts! So we got smooth trot transitions and a nice stride or so with reach and C/T. He was more than happy with this!

Then we went back to the yard and I slid off him in a feeble style. Did some head lower and don't mug me, and waited for neighbour.

She arrived and Merlot did his best giraffe impression! We got on from the steps of the lorry as she didn't want to go past the horses. I warned her that Merlot does seem to have issues with others and his personal space. They took it in turns to lead, but boy he was EVIL about her being anywhere near. Other than that he was a star. He did baulk a bit about leaving the others and going into bottom wood, but partly I think because the mare was too.

He led through the bottom wood but her horse started to get tense so she got off and led her back. Merlot was very good and stayed behind with no faces all the way back.

I really really like him, he has so many good qualities and is such a quick learner, I really can't be upset that he seems to dislike others around him, after all, Aero is the same and Aero is as near to Sainthood as is possible in equine kind!!

Hopefully as he gets more confidence, the personal space issues will lessen as they have with Aero. I keep forgetting he's only been here a week. He really is pretty amazing on that basis alone.

Plus he looked after me in my feeble state, and was gentle on the ground and did perfect ground tying whilst I hobbled back and forth with tack and grooming stuff etc.

I think Magic and Remus might get a day off today, although I might give them a short session in hand this afternoon. For now, I am retiring to the sofa to have my headache in peace!

Bolt out of the blue

2011-11-02T22:02:00.002Z

Had one of those rare occurences where I failed to keep a horse between myself and the ground.

Had a significant period of "flying" time in which to think "oh shit, this is going to hurt". Thank goodness I landed on grass, not concrete or arena fence as looked likely.

Have butchered my hat, but fortunately, the head seems to have survived moderately intact, apart from a stinking headache and neck ache. I am as stiff as a board and have a huge bruise across my back and a lump on my spine, nice. I also did something to my heel, which is very swollen and hurts so can't put it to the floor, or get my boots on.

Must say, it made me appreciate the horses that know what a click means = screech to halt.... it wasn't one of mine, I was riding someone else's usually totally quiet horse, so it was literally a bolt out of the blue,with no real way of knowing why it happened. All we know is he felt it was necessary to leave with that level of force. Poor fella. The last time something truly bolted with me like that was years ago when Magic tried to snack on a branch containing a swarm of bees, he had a very valid reason for needing to leave in a panic at speed - and he pulled up eventually in a straight line!

It also made me appreciate that I can generally notice now when things are escalating with mine, and can get them and me out of any possible dicey situation. (Famous last words of course!)

It definitely has its perks this ability to communicate at all times. Most useful of all is of course Magic's new default of if in danger of scariness, head lower. It gives me a perfect heads up (pun intended) that all is not well in his world, long before we have to get to any off the floor style antics.

Hugged the black ponies last night (they came for gentle cuddles) and told them they were wonderful.

Now if I can clamber aboard ANYTHING this morning I will be doing well! But I arranged to ride with a neighbour, so I may well have to see if I can get some sort of shoe on the foot and go for a short bimble.

Magic my teacher

2011-11-02T11:54:00.002Z

Sometimes he must think I am thick. For some time I've felt that I didn't like the amount of -R I have been using in groundwork. For Magic, there is too much "you must" - in my rope handling. I am sure that most of this is in my ineptitude but Magic ALWAYS goes better when at liberty. Why would that be??

And, it is becoming increasingly apparent, that he goes better and is more happy to "work" when I am riding than doing groundwork with a bridle on. I have backed off and given him FAR more choices in our riding, and he is relishing it (hence him taking me for an off piste hack through the wood!)

Today, for the first time since we moved, we went out with headcollar on, but no rope. 43 acres of fun for a Magic if he really decided to leave! First off, we did WWYLM. Then he stopped and head lowered in a BIG way. Now it was windy, so I took that to mean that he needed to calm himself down. When he had done so, we got the best WWYLM ever. So my lesson today is that I will NOT keep "going in" and asking for the same thing, I will wait until he OFFERS it.

When I waited for him to come with me, it was sooo much fun when he came back. He really does need the opportunity to leave for him to want to stay.

Merlot - we rode round the top wood, did some trotting, which got him a bit high energy, but he calmed as soon as we walked. We figure of 8'ed down different rides a few times, then came out and worked round the cones, got walk/trot really softly, asked for canter - ears pinned, fast trot. Kept asking with light leg aid and voice, and eventually he sort of broke into it. C/T. Cue the smoothest canter-halt transition I've ever sat on. Good work Merlot!

We did it 2 more times, each time less sticky, and on the 4th ask, he went straight into canter without even flicking an ear. Stopped and did the other rein, and got canter sweetly on the first ask! He really is a fast learner. It will be interesting to see if he comes out next time remembering today, as he had remembered the walk trot from the last time ok.

Then, we trotted back into the wood, away from home (his decision to trot, not mine!) and cooled down walking around the wood again. He was really cool. He is so comfy and he is so well educated and balanced that even when he is doing hollow he feels great (as long as he is not drawing back and sticking ears up my nose, which is rare now).

Came home and finished with some really good head lowers, but boy, he has a way to go to match Magic, who managed to head lower in all the lush grass with his nose actually in the dirt (beneath the grass) without grazing! Calming down was obviously of more importance than eating!!

Meanwhile....

2011-11-01T17:07:00.002Z

Magic - got a tad miffed about the lack of attention his way. Saw me bandying a carrot around (we haven't had any carrots for months) and came straight over! Ah, so it appears carrots are significantly more reinforcing than alfalfa pellets, what a surprise!

I got on the bareback pad and we went and did WWYLM in walk, trot and a few moments of canter. I could sit his trot, yes, really! He was a smidge wild, right rein had the full on head circling, I'm about to bronc spectacle. But he did some really nice steps. I just C/T for really good back lift with the desired pace, and was really pleased.

Then got off to do some in hand, and oh dear, someone was VERY high energy. I *think* because the carrots had got him a bit over keen. He did some lovely trot steps, but he was a bit above himself. We finished and went in to work on the *reverse* turns in a bridle, he has them fabby and soft in the headcollar, but when I pick up the opposite side rein he braces first. Fortunately, bits of carrot were still very rewarding, so he did some really nice turns.

We finished with a step sideways with the hind legs with fronts on the mat, then some really exaggerated abs crunches. I can't do them today, I must have done about 120 sit ups at BritMilFit last night and my core is tiiiirreeeeeeed today! Even better then that I managed to sit his trot, or maybe I need sore abs more often!

Remus - his little diddy rainsheet arrived. I do not intend to rug him over the winter, but I do want the option if it is persisting with rain for 24hrs at a time, given that despite the barns, they would all choose to stand in the rain!

So we began. He is fine with a towel rubbing him, but a rug was a bit scarier. I stupidly brought him out of the yard, I think he would have been braver with the others, the trouble with that being that the others would then have "helped".

We got sniffing the rug, targetting it, putting the rug on and dragging it straight off, and managed to finish with having the rug over him properly but with nothing done up. He walked about a bit, and was definitely a little bit worried, but he was very brave. He doesn't mind it flapping, or me putting it on very slowly, or it coming off him, but is definitely a bit nervous of it actually being on him. We will do a few more little sessions because I don't want to find I NEED to put it on him and he's worried about it.

Going Solo

2011-11-01T13:52:00.002Z

Merlot :-)

Firstly, he ground tied whilst I went backwards and forwards with grooming kit/tack etc. Did head lowering and was accessing his back and abs straight away, whoop. Then brought saddle out and managed to get head lower and saddle. Marvellous. Bit tricky with a 16hh+ and only one pair of hands!

He came to the mounting block and stood like an angel, and I didn't have ears up my nose as I got on.

He was really good. I can't believe quite how chilled he is about Echo blasting past out of nowhere at mach 3.

He went round the top wood fine, looking a bit towards home, but stepping out nicely yet calmly.

He was so good I decided to "lump" up and see what happened if we left the wood and went to the bottom one. Well, if he was going to nap it should have been here. Nope, wandered down, into the wood with a bit of a look at the clay pipes he has to walk over on the bridge. Fine through the wood, just a bit joggy up the hill and back down - its like hills are difficult so best done at speed as he was like this when out with Dan and Aero too. Either that or the smell of the badgers worries him!

Then back home over the baby ditch and up the bank (ditch was a bit messy, he couldn't decide whether to step over or jump over and did half of each) and he jumped up the slidey bank in a single bound.

Then back, and my plan was to go straight home through the top wood, but Merlot struck off right where we haven't been before, and AWAY from home to investigate the other field. So we ended up coming back into the wood via the other ride. And he was perfect all the way home.

He lacks a bit of 4x4 skills that the others have, so some of the bare earth caused him to have to adjust his pace, but he was careful, if not always in control of his feet!

Back to the schooling paddock and we trit trotted around nicely a few times on each rein. Perfect first solo flight ;-)

Newsround

2011-10-31T16:21:00.002Z

Merlot - gets top spot today, because he's worth it! This morning, we did head lowering, and then started working on bridling, basically just targetting the bit. He was in conflict about this, so we got a few good touches to the bit, then returned to head lowering before finished.

I noticed that he will head lower to about 2/3 inches off the floor. I have to ask again to get the elevator to the floor, and when he does, his nuchal ligament flips over his thoracic vertabrae with an audible snap. I felt his crest as he went down, and BOY is that ligament tight. No wonder his default is head up. It kicks in when his head is halfway down and it is so solid and hard. Somehow, he needs to get that ligament able to stretch, or we are never going to get him able to work his abs and lift his back happily.

So, we raised one criteria and said C/T only when the elevator hits the floor. He caught on really quickly and then we finished.

I showed Simon before we rode, and there was such a clunk as it went over, and he struggled again to get his nose to the floor. Then, after a few goes, you could suddenly see it affecting his abs and back - we started to get a back lift and an abs tuck when he went those last few inches. So its going to be very doable, we just have to progress slowly enough that he wants to offer what is currently a difficult stretch.

Next, we worked on saddle = head lower. Today, to start with he was worse about the saddle coming, but Aero was tied next to him and he DEFINITELY has personal space worries.

Aero and Merlot next to each other really is a recipe for disaster. They are both stressed by being tied up, but Merlot isn't reliable enough at ground tying yet, AND they are both stressed when another horse is in close proximity. Marvellous, loads of training holes here then ;-)

I got Simon to bring the saddle towards him, so I could head lower/C/T and he was really good. He was also then really easy to bridle (probably because we had played "target the bit" this morning in preparation for him learning to put his own bridle on.)

Then we went for a hack. Merlot and I led round the first wood. I did wonder if we had a bit of a nap as we went along the first ride, but I think it was him thinking he was going to get a C/T for stopping. He then let Aero take over (no faces) and we went round the bottom wood. He is perfect about Echo screaming past like a loon directly next to his feet. He is getting the idea of head down and walk, and feels like he needs to do lots of hill work, so we are currently doing laps of the bottom wood where we at least have a hill!

On the way back, Aero was leading. Merlot stops whenever Aero does, which is really nice. We had just stopped to let an Echo scorch through in front of us, when I realised we were at the log blocking the ride. Its about 1' high, but as we were there and we usually step over it in walk, I thought I'd see what would happen if we trotted in.... so we did, and he popped it like a proper jump! Clever pony.

Then back to the schooling field, and I let Simon and Aero go home, and asked Merlot to turn away from the track to go round the cones. He thought he might make it a nap... then he thought he might leave the building.... I just kept him facing the way I wanted, and when he took the tiniest step in the right direction, C/T. And then he went the way we wanted! We had trots round both ways, and although steering was a little iffey as we passed the track, he had plenty of opportunity to nap and he didn't. And trot is soooooooo nice. Its rideable, joy!

We finished and went in and did a little more head lowering to end. All in all a very successful day :-)

Aero - As mentioned, was stressy on his hack. But Simon coped really well and did good rein mechanics. Aero calmed as he got towards home, so I think a combination of being out with Merlot, and having to leave his herd (the first time since we became 5!)

Remus - was sleepy. Found him lying down in the field twice today, each time with at least one of them standing over him. First time it was Merlot whilst the others grazed, the second time it was all of them - Aero/Dan/Magic in a line facing him on one side, Merlot on the other, all of them snoozing. I think they are liking the more grass!

Magic - gorgeous, slightly perturbed that Merlot got ridden and worked twice, so had a session when we got back. Did some mega abs crunches, but was not really on the planet for stepping sideways - we could do ridiculously BIG side steps but with massive shoulder moves! So we did a short pilates session and left it there.

Dan - can't really leave him out! He is currently calming to everyone until HE decides to kick off! So tonight, I put haylage round whilst they were all down the field, I then trundled down with the wheelbarrow to poo pick. Merlot and Aero mooched up the field to meet me, then carried on up past me. Remus, yes REMUS, came next and walked up the field on his own, once Merlot and Aero had disappeared into the barn. Magic spotted him leaving, and marched up and trotted past him to "lead him in", yeah, like Remus needed that! I was just being awed by how Remus had struck off on his own, when I realised Dan was still at the bottom of the field grazing the new grass.... but not for long, with a squeal he absolutely FLEW up the field, much to Remus' surprise, as he over took him and charged into the barn! Remus just stood there with a WTF? look on his face :-) kinda "I don't think I'll ever understand these strange brown and black boys!"

Whirlwind weekend

2011-10-30T17:31:00.006Z

Things happen so fast! Blink and you miss it.

In the last two days:

Magic - is struggling with leaving his herd, but doing excellent pilates, and is really "getting" the move his back feet without his fronts doing the step under/through exercises. Trot WWYLM is really becoming passagey. Am seriously considering combining the "move the feet" with trot wwylm for even more passage-ness. We have only been out in the bareback pad, and only round the cones. He has been leaving a lot of his brainspace at the yard now he has a baby to look after (sigh, that didn't take long did it!)

Remus - So far, in short 5 minute sessions, we have deliberately done the following; coming to see me as soon as I arrive, have headcollar on, leading, leading away from everyone else, going through the gates and turning to have them shut behind you, walking down the drive and back, led from each side, being touched all over, ground tying, grooming, including mane and tail, pick feet up, pat by everyone, meet lots of different people, be scared of nothing, how to be the bees knees!

He has, single handedly learned how to limbo under the electric, kick his breakfast around the yard, wheedle his way up to the others and nick haylage out of the container they were at. He has got used to being bottom of the heap of a group of 5, and used to Aero squawking at him every time he wants him to move, he has even started to lift a hind leg at people when they irritate him (watch out boys, he ain't going to be bottom of the heap for long, I bet!) He is totally cute and gorgeous and no one is able to be cross with him for long.

Merlot - has learnt that head lower is default behaviour, and currently will be reinforced even in the absence of a cue. Head lower whilst saddling, check. Head lower at mounting block, check. Head lower whilst ridden, check.

Saturday we hacked and we walked FAST, Dan couldn't really keep up. But it was educational. He had to deal with Echo, a ditch, steep incline/declines, stepping over logs, avoiding tree stumps/routes, the foot bridge with a troll under it. The only thing that affected the forward was the troll bridge, and in his defence, he was nervous and then Dan whipped round so Merlot thought that was the best way to go too! The only downside was we couldn't hack side by side, he was worse than Aero with the "I'm going to kill you" faces to Dan.

Then today we did pretty much the same route, he was much better over and through all the obstacles, jumping the ditch without any hesitation. His walk was calmer, and he was able to go in front or behind. We even managed to go level-ish with Dan with not too many faces. We even had a couple of sneaky trots to catch up. All in all he seems a very bold sort of a person, scary things are to be walked up to and past just to see what they are. It makes a change from Magic's method of panic and leave first, think later (when you are many miles away).

Finally, we moved the electric fence so they have more field, and now two entrances in and out of the main field so it shouldn't get so poached and slippy.

Everyone is in together and everyone is fine. Magic is Remus' uncle in the absence of Dan, and even if Dan is there, when Dan feels like saying "stuff it, you babysit for a bit". Aero and Merlot are still in discussions re roles, but it is all relatively mild and no one is laying it on Remus, who seems to float by in his own little bubble, loved by everyone and who can do no wrong.

First ride

2011-10-27T15:46:00.003+01:00

On Merlot.

He was very good. We did some head lowering, and ground tying, and then we played capture the saddle a bit. Blinking flipflops he gets his head high sometimes. Talk about ears up your nostrils!

I didn't get on until he could stand there nicely, which he did quite quickly, but everytime I went to pick up reins he stuck his ears in the sky. So I got on without picking up the reins and he kept his head down! Haha, now THAT'S called observing, noticing and realising you have a training hole but going ahead and working round it anyway, just for the now!

We have a bit of capture the saddle, we have a bit of head lower, now we just need to get both at once ;-)

We walked out to the cones in the field, and I just wanted to have a little walk around them. But Merlot is an explorer by nature apparently - when I put him in the field on his own, he went for a mooch all the way round to check it out!

So the explorer wanted to go straight out for a hack through the woods. I felt (wisely I suspect!) that that would be chunking! So we did a bit around the cones, and then I started to ride him in - we got back to the yard, but rather than turning left to go back to the others, he turned right and walked straight up the drive, past the house and took me for a hack around the garden (via the back of the pond, and then around the edge of the wood (he'd have gone in but I still didn't want him to!) and then past the paddock with the others. In the end, I had to get off and lead him in, else he'd have still been walking me around the woods now probably!

Meanwhile, all 5 have been all together all day, and what with the rain ALL DAY they have spent most of the day in the barns, whoop! So Remus won't melt just yet.

We also took Dan out for a little walk to check Remus was ok, and he just stuck to Magic like glue. So it looks like Magic has put the Mafia Lord persona away again for the time being. He has a herd of five now, and they are all allowed to be there, although Merlot is not really allowed near Remus.....

And then there were five

2011-10-26T19:29:00.003+01:00

Today saw the arrival of Merlot. He is staying with us for a bit, and if we all get on then he may stay for good :-)

He's 10yrs, very low mileage. He is Holsteiner x Trakehner. He's about 16.1hh ish, and short coupled, so a nice size as well.

He came off the lorry and just settled straight in. He was angelic meeting everyone, and managed Magic's temper tantrums like a pro.

In fact, by this evening, I had managed to introduce everyone and had even risked all 5 in together!

To be honest, once Aero accepted Remus, everything has gone smoothly if you take the Magic one out of the equation. He has serious small man syndrome!

But I think we will get there, he is at least being nice to Remus whilst he ostracises Merlot (who doesn't seem to care, just mooches off to find something else to do!) Apparently, Remus is now "one" of the herd, its only Merlot who isn't!

I've split them back up into a 2 and a 3 for the night, and will then put them back in together tomorrow.

Magic did some excellent head lowering when he took a break from being a mafia lord. Remus gave good hugs and kisses and got lots of scritches. He also managed Dan's leaving him very well, and just grazed with Aero. Merlot settled in and seemed to like the place, he helped me poo pick, ah bless.

More photos here

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150343142166434.353523.577541433&type=1&l=3390ebc70d

but the best one is this one of everyone :-)

Videos

Remus

2011-10-25T14:48:00.002+01:00

Or, more correctly, Tresaison Los Lobos, has arrived!

I've been worried ever since we said we'd have him after the last time, so when his breeder said we could collect him "whenever" we downed tools and left straight away.

Probably not the best timing, as the wind picked up as we journeyed home and by the time we unloaded we had a right storm to greet him. Thank goodness we are so sheltered, although it didn't feel it last night!

He loaded and travelled like a saint, unloaded really calmly but someone forgot to tell Aero that he is old and sensible and good as a nanny, and he and Magic were horrendous! So Dan got called up for nanny duty and is doing an absolutely perfect job, I think he was born to do it!

Nothing better than a pink pony - unless he's a STRIPEY pink pony! Who else has a pony with stripes?? :-) Downside is, you can't actually see his ribs to know how he's doing, you have to feel them!

He is already very au fait with foal kisses and bum scratches, but bizarrely, he likes having his poll scratched behind his ears the most! He is unfazed by everything, although he has now learned to be very cautious of big black hosses. Bay ones are fine!

Anyway, first morning pics... he still has his eye on the BBHs over the electric fence from him!

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150343142166434.353523.577541433&type=1&l=3390ebc70d

Today shall go down in history!!

2011-10-23T12:22:00.003+01:00

As the first day ever, that Magic CHOSE to take me for a hack.

Goal (haahaa) accomplished!

The funny thing is, yet again, it wasn't even on my radar for the session. I had put the mat back out in the middle of the cone circle, and got on him in his bareback pad to do some more wwylm and practising stops and go's.

I scrambled aboard on the yard mounting block, as the one in the field is too low, and once he had his C/T - he CHOSE to walk out to the field. I nearly slid straight off the side in shock!

Then, once in the field, he marched purposely straight past the cones and mat and towards the wood - "ookaaaay," thinks I, I wonder where we are going today?

Turns out, we are going in to the wood, and then going off piste and leaving the ride to investigate various sections of wood. Cue the odd squawk from me as apparently Magic can fit places that necessitate a rider flattening themselves on his neck (not easy in bareback pad!)

Then we re-emerged onto a ride, and he struck off to investigate where the boys have pulled up the rhododendrons - I am just wondering why he is snuffling along sniffing, when I spot a crab-apple! Sneaky boy was on a scrumpy mission!!! Once I persuade him to leave the crab-apples, we continue on our way, sticking to rides and we even have a trot!

My bareback pad trot leaves a lot to be desired at the moment, so more practise needed!

We came home and he took me straight to his mat :-)

So we did a couple of leave-the-mat goes to get the go button even better, then I got off and did a bit more trot wwylm. OMG, he was fab. He has suddenly "got" it. That he is to trot at my walk speed, not just trot off and end up past me. I can really start to see the engagement and power coming from behind - but I am still struggling with co-ordination; can I look behind at his inside hind, keep walking purposefully to he can trot with me AND click the right moment AND not trip over myself AND stay in my feet? Yes, but sometimes I kept him trotting for a step longer than I should.

The interesting thing now is that he almost loses trot, then kinda gets it back, when he realises I still want it. It looks like the start of even more "sit" and a really good half halt.

Now I just need to transfer THAT good a trot to when I am on him.... but I can't blame him for not giving me more than a stride or so when I am up there bouncing! Although, in my defence, it is bounce that no longer leaves a large amount of daylight between him and me, so progress is slow but it is there!

Magic the leveller

2011-10-22T15:56:00.003+01:00

Had a session this morning, when we probably shouldn't have! We just worked on the cones/mat exercise and it appeared he had forgotten a lot of what he learnt last time. It was windy, and Saturday morning on the bridleway so high energy which means either run or plant.

We got some good work, but no where near as good as it has been. I managed to just observe what was happening, not be emotionally involved, and not take it personally. Go me!

I also managed to finish when he was in a calm state. He must have been wired (although its so much harder to tell these days, what would have been spin/bronc/bolt is now park or go onto forehand in walk!) because he started spontaneously headlowering himself. He didn't need reinforcing for it, I think it was self-reinforcing because it was calming. So that is brilliant that he has worked out that he has a way of calming himself, and that I will let him do it.

Then I went off to do other stuff, and came back to them later. Aero had a target the bit session as he hates the bridle going on. This will be really useful and will take a few sessions as somewhere along the line it has got seriously poisoned.

Of course, I worked Aero as he was the first in to see me, but that made Magic c.r.o.s.s. So he stood at the gate glowering at Aero and smiling winningly at me!

So when Aero was done and I opened the gate, he came through for another go.

We did circle of cones and mat, and started off ridden. It was loads better and I am FINALLY figuring out how to do the single rein stops (sorry Magic, I'd been doing something else entirely!)

We did round the cone and back to mat, but pretty quickly he wanted to go round the circle and show off his wwylm. So we did that whilst I practised stops, and only went back to the mat occasionally.

It went so well that I decided to get off and do some trot wwylm in hand. My goodness. He did it perfectly, really sitting behind and able to trot and my "slightly beefed up" walk! Whoop!

And when we had done 6 or 7 little trots on each rein, and I was ecstatic and wanted to quit - guess who grew concrete feet and didn't want to leave the circle? Oh how different from this morning!!!

So again, I don't know whether I should have just left him this morning, or whether going and doing it and surviving and enjoying it meant he came out in an even better place this afternoon?

Who knows! All I know is that its all ups and downs. Fortunately, the spikes on the graph are getting less and less extreme over time! Clever boy, and he might be managing to teach me more emotional control too!

Pressure

2011-10-21T12:14:00.002+01:00

As in, the amount we put ourselves under as human beings, as riders, in all our roles in life really.

I don't know if its a "me" thing, or if its a "female" thing, or if its an everyone thing. But I let it make me suffer.

Whenever anyone asks "why aren't you eventing"? I can come up with a list of reasons; expense, Magic's splints, never knowing if the ground is going to be good enough, time, lack of arena, etc etc. But basically, the biggest reason is my horse found it stressful. Probably mainly because I found it stressful because I put us both under such pressure.

I am starting to see that I will want to get out there again one day. Maybe not eventing, maybe only dressage and SJ, but I will do it when we are ready. It might be that Magic will always find it too stressful, and if this is the case, then we will either break it down to a level he doesn't, or I will have to accept that his early experiences, thanks to me, are so poisoned that we will never get there. It doesn't matter. What matters to me is our relationship, and the fact that he soooo wants to work, wants to find the "yes" answer and wants to interact with me.

My friend worded it much better recently, she asked "so, you are just going to have fun with your horses now?" Yes, sirree, that's EXACTLY what I intend to do. And I intend to make it fun for THEM too. And maybe, just maybe, I can gain as much emotional control as they are and we can go OUT and have fun too.

So today, we went and had our first Balls! session. I took the camera, and managed to juggle balls, clicker, treats and camera to get a few snaps. Bless him, he's never really seen a tennis ball before, but he soon figured (generalised) he could pick it up in his teeth. Am actually wondering whether there might be a benefit to this - I was worried that it would be too big for him, but he can sort of squeeze the tennis ball once its in his mouth, and pop it out when he feels like it (or when he hears a click!). Might it help his TMJ and get him a bit more relaxed about opening his mouth wide in the gag for the dentist? You never know, everything is everything else after all!

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150338271761434.352470.577541433&type=1&l=02e1a5b782

Then we went and played with the cone circle and the mat - first of all we couldn't get go to leave the mat, but very quickly he was hurrying back to it! Then I got to practice my rein skills for the turn to get a slow/stop as well. He figured it out so quickly.

Gotta love a horse that thinks for himself and isn't afraid to offer weird and wacky behaviours (like picking up a tennis ball!)

Riding in balance

2011-10-20T13:20:00.003+01:00

I want to ride my horse, but I only want to ride him when he is in balance.

Its funny how you don't mind something until you experience a better alternative! I used to ride him all the time and he was NEVER in such good balance as he is now, but still I have felt him go sooo well that now I want that all the time.

I don't LIKE riding him when he is not on the balance beam!! I'd rather do ground work and have fun, and improve his balance, and get on when I know I can get that balance.

The first issue we used to have was him being a bit stuck and struggling with forwards. We got to the point that around the cones or when schooling he was confident enough to get forwards and then we could work on the balance point. He still struggled a bit with forwards out hacking, especially the first 100m or so from the cones (understandably - highly reinforced!)

Since we went partying at the weekend? We seem to have developed a new challenge - we now HAVE forwards. And then some!!! It was brewing before then as I remember showing P my inability to halt for a click last time we hacked.... Strangely, he was fine on the way home, it was the way out where he wouldn't stop once he'd got going.

Heather Blitz has a great saying - riding is just a bit of go, a bit of slow, a bit of left and a bit of right. Yeah, great. Now just how on earth do you juggle it to have just enough of each??!

So now, we have not enough slow! If I ask him he balances up and steadies himself and gets C/T. But he moves off as soon as he has his treat, and if my reins rest on his withers then we are at mac 3 in walk. And that's hard for my thighs/core to match (and even harder for Dan to match!)

I need him to understand that his cue for being in balance and using his abs/core/back is me BEING on him, not just when I ask with a rein lift. I want him to feel he can keep his balance like that without it being difficult, and to do that we need to get him fit enough that he CAN stay in that balance without me having to ask more than once.

But today he did have a bit of an excuse as we took Aero with us.... loose! It was fun, sometimes Aero followed us, but sometimes he struck off and gave us a lead! When we got to the first exit of the wood and tried to turn up a track within it, he was in front and went out in to the field. We all turned right and called him and he came cantering back to us, straight past us and kept trotting.... He stopped after a bit and looked behind him as if to say "come ooooonnn you lot".

I did take his rope back and lead him down the bottom wood, but when we got back into the top wood I let him go again. He led most of the way, took the wrong turn (going away from home!) cantered to catch up (jumping a log on route!) and stopped behind Dan. We carried on up the ride until he made a break for it and came past us and carried on! We expected him to stop again but he didn't - he cantered past and out of sight. Dan was incredible and didn't bat an eyelid, Magic got a bit bouncy but held himself together sooooo well. Amazing emotional control from both ponies.

Ah well, we thought he'd be out on the nice grass paddock eating - but no - he was stood at the very edge of the wood where the ride becomes the paddock - not eating but waiting for us!! :-)

You have to wonder sometimes what goes through their heads! Proof that he is happy to take the lead though, and he was ever so much more jolly than when he has a rider on! And it was nice to ride along behind him watching his back REALLY work :-)

You spin me right round

2011-10-20T12:31:00.003+01:00

Magic has been practising his stepping under with his hinds in various forms:

1. Duct tape lesson and learning to step inside hind under on cue, rather than stepping forward to then swing quarters around. Working on the mat has helped. He reeeeeaaaallly struggles to do anything with the hinds without taking a huge onto the forehand step with a front foot first....

2. Having the rope over his neck and then walking behind him and picking up a contact on the rope from the opposite side than the rope - eg, rope is looped over the left side of his neck, but I am standing by his right hip. He would choose to turn right to "find" me, but I pick up and run down the rope and he works out to turn LEFT to come and find me. His look of "Oh, THERE you are!" is quite cool :-)

3. Having rope/reins over neck and picking up slack with both hands, and stepping back (angled away but towards his hip) and releasing the rein BEFORE it gets contact to his headcollar/bridle. He likes this one, he thinks its easy, but he hasn't quite got it on cue - which is where no 2 comes in - he likes to think I am going to do 3 when I ask for 2 and it helps that I can do some "hanging on in there and NOT reinforcing" until he gets the "right" behaviour.

We also started playing again with his big green ball as we have been asked to write some articles for RWYM Network News on RWYM and clicker.... and that they also want some photos of Magic and a variety of balls. Am currently trying to work out whether a tennis ball is too big for him to pick up? He can pick up his horse ball though so we might have to settle to that.

The big green ball got a snort, and then he marched right up to it (he was loose) and gave it a big bump with his head so it rolled away :-)

Its true then that clicker behaviours aren't ever forgotten - even random ones!! I last had his green ball out about 6 months ago, and we only ever played with it a handful of times as we were on a hill so it always annoyingly rolled away!

Demo video

2011-10-18T13:58:00.002+01:00

Spot the deliberate mistake on my title ;-)

A clicky weekend

2011-10-17T13:18:00.001+01:00

Friday

Magic and I had a lesson. It seems that while we have a cracking WWYLM and can get three-flip-three balance, he is not quite connecting into his hind feet. Which pleased me as its what I have been FEELING - that the hinds just get a bit "stuck" and aren't flowing with the rest of him. Especially when we try to get to hip shoulder shoulder. Interesting that we can get loads more flow when I am on him than on the ground - maybe because I am such a clutz on the ground!

Part of it is me, and my innate tension when being watched. Sigh. We discussed it and yet again its about my self esteem and not about either of our abilities, talent, dedication etc. I think years of being in conflict when having lessons etc has made it worse - I feel like I am rubbish because trainers (prior to RWYM) would be saying things to help, but they would be undoubtedly about escalating pressure and I would feel unhappy about increasing the pressure on Magic and would not put my commitment into it, making them say it repeatedly and all of us get frustrated. = Conflict in me.

But in order to not be in conflict we have to KNOW what is conflicting! Its taken me a long time to figure it out, and it'll take me even longer to be able to deal with the fallout. I am going to have some NLP so hopefully that will help.

It's why going on a RWYM course feels like home. For me, I know I will not get shouted at, I will be heard, and I can allow my horse's feelings to be heard too. But I still have to speak up for my horse. Go to people for opinions and your horse for the answer - but then as our horse's interpreter, we HAVE to be willing to stand up for our horses opinions, and I know for one I have been guilty of ignoring him in the past, hence more conflict!

Anyway, back to Friday. I need to practice more at getting into my feet, relaxing (I think more so when I am watched than when I am alone.)

Envisage my leading hand as a horse walker - it only ever draws the horse forward, not in or back.

For 3-flip-3, hip shoulder shoulder, I need to look back to see hind foot. This turns me into total clutz. When riding I can feel the balance, so am going to either have to learn to look behind me and stay flowing, OR get more feel when on the ground, which I think will be easier as its coming along nicely.

Remember to release both reins. Over the weekend I experimented with a new cue - my hands clasped together as we walk = wwylm. Worked well, but I need to remember my own cues!!

Then we worked in the barn, on me just stepping in, picking up the rein in both hands, lifting the slack out if it as I step back diagonally towards his bum, and releasing and drawing him in to me so he steps towards and around.

Homework - Practice this as it will help get him to engage his hinds.

Also, continue with the duct tape lesson but do it on the mat - he needs to step sideways under himself WITHOUT taking a front foot forward first.

Connect him to his back feet - go back to try hind feet on the mat again

Basically, work on anything that can teach him to connect his back feet to his front end.

Saturday - Clinic. Focus, get in my bubble. Stay with him. We worked on similar things. Rope handling in the morning was really good, I need to get more relaxed through my shoulders/arms (quelle surprise!) and allow the rope handling to flow more.

Magic actually taught me that I need to give him frequent breaks, change the "session" to keep his interest.

Sunday

Demo - all sorts of things going on, but he was really good. Started off really distracted and quite tense, but got into it and ended up having done WWYLM, capture the saddle, WWYLM under saddle, 3-flip-3, pilates, pose, mat, touch goblins etc etc.

He loaded really well each day, and coped even when we dropped Teddy off at his yard on the way home on Sunday. I am so proud of him and how far we have both come!

The answer is no.....

2011-10-14T13:11:00.002+01:00

At least the answer is no when numpty owner chunks too many things together. Lorry in new place and loading, not a bother.

Lorry in new place, under oak tree where branches rest on roof and produce screeching noise AND loading - more sticky but doable.

Any ability to stay calm whilst ON the lorry? Nada. Zilch. Nope.

He left the building at speed twice, BUT the good side to this is that I let him go, he went back to the yard, but as I walked down he was walking back to meet me, towards the scary stuff. In the old days, if I had let him go, I'd never have caught him again because he was so worried he'd done the wrong thing.

Now there IS no wrong thing, so he totally forgives me for being numpty owner and chunking, and comes back to play again and see if I've figured it out yet. Talk about patience of a saint - and I mean him with regards to me, rather than vice versa!!

Sometimes I still need to workMUCH harder at recognising to his behaviour BEFORE he gets too high energy. In an odd way though, he is so rarely high energy now, that I don't get to practise that much!

We finished with standing around the lorry where you can hear the screeching and practising our head lowering, and that was golden.

So, I will need to move the lorry to a non-screechy position before loading tomorrow. Then at some point, I will need to get him less noise sensitive, but to be honest, he is LOADS less noise sensitive already, so it may be an "everything is everything" else thing and he may continue to get less reactive just by ensuring I lower my criteria when there are odd noises around.

I may be missing in action for the rest of the weekend, but will endeavour to keep a note of what we do and what we learn and report back :-)

Heehee!

2011-10-13T11:54:00.003+01:00

I put ramp down, went to get vest etc, and when I came back, Magic was parked at the electric fence gate trying to get to the lorry ramp!

We went through and at the bottom of the ramp I ran hand down rein....

and he marched up without me, turned round at the top and looked smug! :-)

I had to run up the ramp to give him his treat!

We are definitely going to start encountering issues when we get off the lorry mind you!!

I can't believe how different he is about it in less than a week. Why didn't I learn about this stuff YEARS ago?? Its mental how easy and stress free life can be!

I have now moved lorry as need to get diesel for weekend, so shall see if he can generalise to a different place.

Be careful what you wish for!

2011-10-12T09:15:00.003+01:00

I finally figured out why Magic stands on the ramp "clomp clomp". I even wrote it down in a previous post - what is he generalising to? Stand on the mat! And what does stand on the mat entail? Standing! Not walking straight across it (or up it, in the case of the ramp).

Doh.

So this morning, they are all munching hay, I put vest on and go through yard to put ramp down - before I have got out the yard, Magic is behind me looking keen. Yes, keen! To go and play some more in the lorry :-)

So he comes with me and stands at the foot of the ramp whilst I faff with partitions etc. Then he clomp clomps. And looks pleased with himself. I try free shaping his back feet onto the ramp, but to be honest, its such a steep ramp that he can't really stand with all 4 feet on it for long, he needs to move. But he THINKS he's supposed to be standing on it like the mat.... so he has a conflict going on.

So I come down next to him, and start to run hand up rope (no contact on it yet) and he's loading himself on again! Phew. So he was only getting stuck because he thought standing on the ramp was what I wanted!

We do head lower, and stand in place for partition to go across, and he is soooo much calmer. He gets a very high rate of reinforcement when on the lorry. Then we go to get off..... ah. I see. Pony has figured that being on the lorry earns C/T. Pony is going to start not wanting to come off the lorry, just like we went through a phase of not wanting to leave the mat! Don't over train any one criteria, make sure you train the opposite one too!

So I had to run hand down rein to ask him to step forward, and he came off really sweetly. Turned around and straight on, and more standing at the back in place, perfectly. Then off again and we finished.

I need to be careful next session that we can get off the lorry!! But its so nice that in so few sessions he is now calm about being up there. See previous post for some possible reasons why - DESPITE the fact that it used to be high stress because we were going places....

Then Mum came to ride. Called the boys and they came in, and Magic came straight through yard to the tacking up area. Clever boy! There was some sort of commotion at a local farm and they all got a bit high energy. Guess who calmed down first and went to sleep in the sun whilst being tacked up as the other 2 kept moving around nervously? Yep. Magic!

We had a nice ride, and nothing of note happened! Bonus!

Mum asked if Aero has had his back done as he's moving better - nope, the only difference is the pilates. I also need to remind him of head lowering, as Simon may need to practice it when we leave him on his own for the clinic on Saturday.

Also, Dan was left alone for only the second time, and although he whinnied a few times, he did not leave the barn and no galloping around like a loon! Big bonus!!

Goals, or the lack there-of!

2011-10-12T08:57:00.003+01:00

A good quote from Click to Calm by Emma Parsons. Its about healing the aggressive (ie fearful) dog, but just exchange dog for horse!

"One of the major benefits of clicker training...is that it incorporates both classical and operant conditioning principles simultaneously to help us desensitise and "reprogram" our dogs. By clicking and feeding the dog in an aversive environment, you not only change the dog's emotional association with that environment (classical conditioning) but you can also pinpoint every correct decision the dog makes while he "operates" in the environment (operant conditioning).

Another benefit is that the click always means the same thing, every time. When the animal hears the click, it knows that whatever it was doing at that precise moment in time was the reason it got rewarded. And when you are trying to capture the absence of....behaviour.... no tool other than a clicker - certainly not your voice - can mark these momentary behaviours as precisely. Bob Bailey once expressed the exactness of the clicker in saying "its the 'scalpel' in teaching intricate behaviours."

Behaviour taught via the clicker has the tendancy to become indelibly engraved in the mind of the animal you are teaching. It is not forgotten.... Clicker trained behaviour quickly becomes an animal's "default behaviour". When an animal is in and uncertain state of mind, it displays a clicker-trained behaviour more frequently than behaviours it learned through aversive or punishment-based training.

Simply hearing a click physiologically calms your dog.... We clicker trainers see.... patterns of rapid learning, long retention, and emotional surges....with positive emotions rather than fear response. It may be that the clicker is a conditioned "joy" stimulus that is acquired and recognised by the primitive pathways (in the brain)....

Is it possible that the sound of the click is not only physiologically calming for your dog, but also for you? As the handler of a dog with (fear) responses, you feel a great deal of tension yourself. If the process of clicking your dog reduces that tension, then you are clicking and calming yourself as well. You are providing yourself with the default behaviour of observing, clicking and reinforcing your dog, rather than exhibiting your own tension and fear. This is the gift of clicker training for those handlers, like me, whose hands shake as we expose our dogs to situations we both find aversive."

So this is why the longer you clicker train, the more powerful it seems to become in overcoming fear. If you only clicker trained your difficult behaviours (mounting block is a common one) then the chances are that the click will not be as meaningful (in a good way) to the horse, and may even be a bit poisoned. And that is without even going down the line of you can't start with your end goal!

I have decided I am goal aversive these days, I now have anti-goals - "in order to get him calmly on the lorry, I intend to spend a lot of time NOT getting him on the lorry" !! ;-)

Squealingly good times

2011-10-11T13:12:00.002+01:00

Whoop!

Blowing a howling gale around here. Magic and I went hacking round the woods and he was the best he's ever been. Ignored Aero bellowing for him. He took the long route out, and then chose to trot along the field edge away from home to go the far wood. Bonkers.

We are working on balance beam and really really straight and soft if I pick reins up off his neck, but when they are resting on his neck he can take a stretch and just hack in his natural balance.

Was totally calm in the bottom wood, until I lined him up at a ditch - he went to turn away then panicked that he would get a telling off :-( No Magic, that doesn't happen any more! He immediately calmed again, which is a BIG deal, especially when I think back how much I poisoned his "no" response. Now I am practicing at being able to reward him for SOMETHING after he's said no, so we can get to ignoring the no's without him worrying something bad is going to happen to him.

I'm sure its taking away the negatives for no that has helped him become so calm and so enthusiastic so quickly. Its the old Premack principle again a bit - look at ditch C/T then be allowed to leave.... then come back C/T and be allowed to leave, and gradually he wants to stay. Same thing with the lorry ramp and everything. See? Give them choices and then you can USE their choices to influence their training, because they realise you will give them what they want :-)

So I left the reins on his neck, and every time he looked towards the ditch he got C/T, then stepped towards it, C/T. Each time he wanted to leave, I let him, but C/T for any movement back to it. He ended up on the brink of it looking like he was going to jump it C/T.

I turned him away from it and started hacking home, and we got about 20metres down the track when he went "squeeeeeee" and cantered off swinging his head around him :-) Release of tension, but interestingly, he didn't feel tense in a bad way, more in a "gotta get this out of me" way. He got C/T for pulling up and then was super calm and super on the balance beam all the way home.

Finished in the paddock and did one lap of the cones in hand, practising graze/don't graze as additional reinforcement.

He is becoming so much more fun to be around and I honestly can't remember the last time I was even mildly worried about something he did.

The squealing thing is becoming more and more common, usually happening as he turns a corner in the wood and decides the next ride looks promising for going up a gear. He doesn't do it in company though, which makes me think its a release of tension thing. Its almost like "I held my emotions together there, but once I am safe again, I just gotta let it out".

:-)

More on choices

2011-10-11T10:11:00.003+01:00

Giving an animal/person choices is such a powerful thing. It allows them to have some control in their situation, and that gives them confidence. Its something I've discussed before, and something we rarely if EVER give our horses.

In giving horses choices, we have to accept that sometimes they will make unwise ones. So do we! If a human with no disability makes an unwise choice, that's fine.... if someone with a mental or physical disability makes an unwise decision, we throw our hands up in horror and try to stop them being able to do anything in case they make another one. That's what the Mental Capacity Act was partly about - just because people sometimes make unwise decisions, that doesn't make them lacking in capacity to make their own choices.

I feel the same about the horses. Dan for example is often making unwise decisions and getting himself into sticky spots. Wrapping him up in cotton wool is only going to make him unhappy and feel like he has NO control over his life, which in turn would negatively impact on his behaviour.

I do the best I can to protect my horses from what life throws at them, but if they make unwise decisions (like blatting round the field and straight over the ruts, or rolling on stoney ground) then that is their choice. They are the individual in that situation, I am not.

I am finding more and more that as I give them MORE freedom to make choices, that they are thinking more clearly and are less likely to be over reactive or get into trouble (Dan excempted!!!)

So loading onto the lorry is Magic's choice of the moment. He doesn't have to load, although from past history he may well still feel like he will get forced if he doesn't.... which is why I was clear on the first few attempts that I actually REALLY didn't want him to end up on the lorry!

But now he has choices, and is able to actually engage in the process, he is getting more and more confident, day by day.

I have also figured out why Magic used to run off the lorry at such speed - its because being enclosed in that small space scared him so much. Why he always used to load so well I'll never know!

He took a little bit less time to load himself this morning, and once on we were able to do head lowering, duck tape moves, backing round a corner. Very good. He is fine as long as he is facing out. If he is facing in he is a bit worried and looking behind him, if facing as if I would shut the partition he is at his most scared. I would ideally like to get him where he can stand relaxed in that position before close the partition and definitely before I travel him.

So there is still plenty of work to be done. I might end up having to travel him on Saturday knowing that we still have training holes around it. Also, once we get there on Saturday and he realises its just more clicking, we might be able to un-poison the lorry a bit more - it might be also about what used to happen AFTER he went on the lorry that makes him tense too.

I might swap them over and put Dan on first, then Magic on the back on Saturday and see if he prefers it.

We came off, when he chose to, and then we had another go. Far quicker to go on and MUCH more chilled about being up there and the lorry swaying like a boat at sea in the high winds! This time I asked him to come off before he felt he needed to. And he came down the ramp in SUCH great balance. So, I know when he can always come DOWN the ramp that lightly, that he is ok about the lorry. Sod the loading, its the UNLOADING that's telling me more!

Loading and pilates

2011-10-10T19:53:00.003+01:00

Magic can stretch his nose into the lorry whilst his hind feet are still on the floor. Its quite a talent for a short chubby one!

He has also generalised that lorry ramp = mat. So you stand on it "clomp clomp" very loudly, grinning like a cheshire cat, whilst your mother panics that you are going to go through the ramp if you thump it like that.

Then after a few minutes, and a few steps back off, he walked straight in!

I had him in a headcollar as the lorry is parked in 40 acres with only a boundary fence - but it was good for me to focus entirely on how to hold the end of the rope so that it NEVER came taught.

He was totally chilled when on the ramp (good vibes from his mat I suspect) but much more high energy once on the box. but we got to practice his "duct tape" marker cues, which still worked, and other useful generalisations. Head lower for calm (or to target ramp). Target my fist for easy clicks when he looks like he might get stuck.

It amazed me, the difference in feel is amazing. Even though he was more high energy on the lorry, he was much much better than ever before, boy, it was almost fun being in there with him, he wasn't trying to scamper off or getting stressed by the small space.

I can see now how our energies used to bounce off each other. Today, I was calm and so was he. It felt lovely.

Came off the ramp, and I was going to put him away, but he turned back to the ramp to go "clomp clomp" on it again. So I let him and up he went. :-)

This time we stood in there and I walked out and left him to "stay" at the top. As long as he is facing out he is chilled, he is a bit more worried by facing the closed sides, but still loads better than before.

I do need to get to the point where he is chilled and able to cope when I shut him in, but all in good time!

Meanwhile, Aero got some more pilates. I am getting tighter on my criteria and he now has to stand square to get C/T as well, so I didn't ask him to do as much.

I do get all three of them in a queue to start work when I walk into the yard now. Its nice, makes me feel wanted!!

Thinking like a clicker trainer

2011-10-08T12:16:00.001+01:00

Very appropriate and timely quote, stolen from Facebook friend:

"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary." - Steve Jobs.

Next week, we are going to our clicker clinic, whoop! See here http://magicsownlittleworld.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html

So, its time to get ye olde wagon up and on the road again. I know we have a big training hole around loading. Magic loads every time, but the lorry = stress in his world - the stress might be leaving his herd, going to scary competition where in the old days I would have been stressed and high energy and unforgiving. There are many reasons why the lorry has got poisoned.

Also, he doesn't like small spaces - stables and the like and the lorry is very much a small space. Plus, the ramp is steep. So all in all, we have much work to do before it is *fixed*.

So, my first challenge was can I get him to enjoy coming to the lorry and playing near the ramp. I was determined that if nothing else I did NOT want him to actually get on the lorry today. If he had, I would have known I was lumping!

So, chunking down behaviours into small enough pieces, that's what its all about. If I actually had to pick up a contact on the lead rope, then I was chunking up too big.

I moved the lorry into a decent position and put ramp down. This woke them all up (remembering of course that they have just lost a herd member and are redefining their OWN roles in the herd, so things that wouldn't normally get them high energy, are doing so at the moment.)

I took headcollar and went to get Magic. He came to me. That's a big deal in itself. In the old days, if he was loose when I started up the lorry, he would walk away from me. So a big tick there! I could quit now and still be ahead of the game! :-)

We walked out the yard to where the lorry was on the hard standing. The others tried to followed us (possibly more concerned about Magic leaving as well, than he was about the lorry.) Then they bogged off down the field. Marvellous.

Magic got high energy, unsurprisingly. So we did head lower. Then, when he was calm, we did targetting the ramp. We did this and I only clicked if each time he targetted the ramp, he did so slightly further up it. This worked really well until he was standing with his fronts half way up and his backs on the floor.

Meanwhile, loads of walkers with dogs are walking down the bridleway, and Echo is barking like a maniac at them. At Mum's this would have set Magic off into "lose-it" territory. Here, it got him high energy, and needing to get off the ramp to go and see what was happening, but much less stressed than before.

I wanted him to try getting off the ramp and find nothing bad happened (even a tightening of the rope) so he could really realise that he had the CHOICE to come to the ramp or not. So each time he came off the ramp, we did head lowering so he still got reinforced for calm. Then I'd walk back to the ramp and each time we'd start targetting again.

His emotional control astounds me. There was a never ending stream of dog walkers, Echo barking, the other 2 charging round the field. This was worst case scenario, and TBH if I had done 5 more minutes he WOULD have loaded himself. But my goal this morning was for him to NOT have loaded. So we quit instead! My, haven't I changed???!

I did a couple more head lowers in the yard, as meantime the boys had come back into the yard and galloped out again (I swear they were deliberately testing poor Magic!) Then I let him go. He hung around a while til I left, then he wandered out of the yard. I wanted to see how he was when he went out, as usually he would be explosive. He wasn't explosive, but trotted down to the others and then instigated games. So yes, high energy, but not in a scared high energy way.

Very pleased. Tomorrow we are out all day, but I'll do it again a few times this week, and maybe he'll be loading himself by the weekend. Of course, actually TAKING him somewhere else will change the situation slightly, he will still think of new places as stressful, expecting me to get stressed, so our over use of headlowering might be useful for this too!

Advanced TT

2011-10-07T08:10:00.000+01:00

Rather overshadowed, obviously.

Monday I wasn't really present. Gave a pretty poor lesson and was a pretty difficult client/rider for another coach. I wasn't trying to be difficult, but I had a weird experience where I just got up on the horse and went into myself, riding the fixes that I needed to in the horse, but pretty unable to feedback to the poor soul in that lonely place in the middle!

Monday night I went home for some soul wrenching blubbing and a significant amount of vino.

Tuesday I came out mentally in a better place. Got a ride on Quite. Got thrown in at deep end guinea-pigging shoulder in. Interspersed with a bit of rising passage :-) In the workshop had a total lightbulb moment about seatbones and sitting on the pad between them and the lesser trochanter - and why riding Quite makes me feel like I'm sucking up my pelvic floor. I'm not, I'm just narrowed in so much that it has to go somewhere!

Then in the afternoon, teaching still didn't feel up to much, but feedback disagreed. Riding was cool. Had a lovely horse that could teach me herself, as well as a brilliant coach. Got much more organised and got to a place where we realised that my middle of right board would be weak, so if I can strengthen that, then I can find the right side of my diaphragm (I already have my left) and then I can feel the little muscles between my shoulder blades working! Whoop!

Wednes - taught a much more experienced/talented coach than me, managed to get some fixes in between us :-) Had a lesson on a gorgeous horse, again, well taught by a great coach, whose first language isn't even English! Did more work on pads outside my seat bones, right side board and diaphragm to access my shoulder blades, and using the feeling of having both pads, to "grow" boards up my body from there, and DOWN into horse to influence hind feet. Great great feel.

Pleased to come home and fall apart, but great learning with a great bunch of folk! Nothing like a bit of distraction therapy, and that's about as good as it gets!

Maximus Decimus Meridius

2011-10-05T21:28:00.000+01:00

I knew a man once who said, "Death smiles at us all. All a man can do is smile back."

Maximus Decimus Meridius, Gladiator.

He taught me so much, I literally don't know where to start. It would help if tears weren't blurring the screen, but that just sounds dramatic.

He taught me patience.

He taught me that every person/animal ALWAYS thinks they have a valid reason for the things they do. So on that basis, how can you punish anyone?

He taught me to embrace and appreciate the differences in others.

He taught me to listen harder to body language and mannerisms, including my own.

He taught me that I can't fix everything, no matter how hard I try.

He taught me that life is a journey, and we need to enjoy it to the best of our abilities, and try to empower those around us to enjoy it as well.

He taught me how to teach Simon.

He taught Simon how to ride.

He taught the boys how to toe the line! Whether they wanted to, or not!

I can't believe quite how aptly I named him.

"Strength and honour."

Maximus Decimus Meridius, Gladiator.

He certainly had both of them in spades. He was strong enough to fight his failing body all his life. He was strong enough to want to please me despite his physical weakness. He was strong enough to hold out for what he felt was right. He was strong enough to tell me where I was going wrong. He was strong enough to be patient and wait for me to figure the right thing out.

He was all these things and so many more. I owe him a huge amount.

"What we do in life echoes in eternity."

Maximus Decimus Meridius, Gladiator.

I don't regret a thing. Except the ending.

One final fitting quote from Gladiator. After Maximus' death at the end, Juba says "And now we are Free. I will see you again... but not yet... Not yet!"

I hope you have fun out there buddy. Till we meet again.

Magic pulls it out the bag

2011-10-02T16:05:00.002+01:00

Again!

This morning he took me for a lovely ride through the woods, and even braved the bottom wood entirely unaided by a-nother, and, dare I say it, CHOOSING to go. And there were cows in the edge of the wood, meaning dark shapes moving along in front that you couldn't really see. He was angelic. We did the new rides in the wood and one is just perfect (designed by moi) to canter allllll the way up to the top of the hill :-) Mega! Perfect footing all summer, I dread to see how muddy the rides get in winter, but its mainly sand so we may be ok.

Actually, when I rode with Mum the other day she said she couldn't believe how chilled Magic was (especially as we had hedge cutter and diggers and the like all surrounding us and Aero was a bit tense!)

He has a fat belly though. I can't deny it any more. Its not just that he's big boned now! Anyone got a wheel for me to stick under it? I wouldn't mind quite so much, but all this pilates should surely give him a lovely sleek tummy? No, mind you, mine isn't so I guess I can't expect his to be either.

Hmm, not much of a training journal this is it?

So, new (and yet old) aid for forward is run hand down rein, he softens and then get him to follow the feel forward to take a step. Its well cool. It feels lovely, much nicer and softer than a kick, and it gets me out of using leg, so I can begin to notice more when I am using leg. This is really only for when he is "sticky" for forwards. Once he has chosen to go forward, aids for different gears are really good!

Although he has started to experiment a bit more with the squeal and move theory - it goes "this looks like a nice canter place.... weeeeeeeeee". Trouble is, he makes me giggle when he does it, so generally, we have a canter, then I ask for a give, get a transition down, then C/T. Then he thinks going forward is ALWAYS good, even when its not actually what I had intended!

It also is starting me off getting better downward transitions, and not doing my lazy thing of "if I click, he'll stop then I don't have to worry about them yet!" That training hole may need filling sooner rather than later, if nothing else because I know we can keep the good balance on downward trans, but at the moment a click generally results in an emergency stop!

Thanks for all the kind words about Max. I know it is the right thing, its just so flaming hard.

Max is having a lovely day though, ignorance is bliss! We opened the first bale of haylage yesterday, and are gradually introducing it with the last of the hay. Only my hand keeps slipping and they have had 3 helpings today. So he is snoozing in the shade of the barn out of the flies, and generally stuffing his face. When he runs out, if he sees me in passing, he whickers, and I go and deliver some more.... soft touch. I did tell the others (including the one that needs a wheel to hold his belly up) that they can forget this sort of 5 star treatment in future!!!

Decision made

2011-10-01T19:23:00.001+01:00

By Friday morning he was pretty much immobile, and I started to think maybe this IS the time.

Had a long chat/sob with Simon, and then to the vet, who was blinking brilliant and explained in words of one syllable that yes, this particular issue could be treated, but probability of success is extremely low as the knee is proving. He may need months of barn rest again for the knee, and with Max, we always know that there are so many other issues going on, is it fair to put him through it when the knee is now very likely to keep going? Vet thinks knee has packed up again from taking too much off the bruised foot. We think we fix one piece of him, and another just falls apart :-(

I have to accept that I cannot fix him, that I have given him the best I can for as long as I've felt he was ok, but now, it seems to be the time to say he shouldn't have to fight his own body any more. But it makes me feel like I am playing God. I keep having to say to myself his quality of life is the most important thing, and I would want someone to help me if I were in his position.

For Simon to help with the decision means he feels its right too.

Vet agrees that this is the right time and the deed is being done on Monday morning. Meanwhile, he is getting mega bute and mega apples to get him as comfy as possible.

The slightly horrible thing, is that since he has been on 6 bute a day, he has changed, obviously he is sounder, but he is also much less grumpy around the others, even than he usually is when sound. That tells me that he has had some level of pain going on for most of the time.... it didn't show up when bute trialled of 4 a day down to 2 a day. But 6 is quite a lot!

It makes me very sad, but also makes me see that I am doing the right thing. I can't keep him on 6 bute a day, but it has shown that the vet is right, its not just about "this" issue, or "that" issue, its about Max as a whole.

Obviously, I'm blogging about it, because it helps to write it all down, but I most certainly don't want to talk about it. I've just managed a day's teaching with everyone asking me how my lot are, and I've had to down right lie at times, because I just couldn't let my guard down or I'd have got nothing done.

Its the worst of times, but its the price you pay for having animals, and I do feel its the right time. Seeing him skipping around like a happy fella when on 6 bute has just brought it home to me. If I kept him going, it would be for me, not for him.

Sad times. :'-(

Pony hugs

2011-09-30T11:58:00.001+01:00

Hugging is not natural for ponies, but it pays to train them to like it, for times like this!

I needed a pony hug, went out in the dark and got accosted by a Magic, who came to see me. I'm sure he wasn't after a hug, but he got one. And then I realised I probably should teach him to like it, and to hug me back. Some days, only a pony hug will do!

One of the big reasons I needed a pony hug, is Max. He is now much sounder on his near fore, where he had the bleeding sole, but very lame on the off fore. I can't be sure its not his foot, but his knee is fatter, and he is really bad on turns again. I'm not sure how much longer we can do this (him and me). I am slowly coming to the conclusion that not only have I not managed to "fix" him yet, but that I'm not sure he IS fixable. If its not feet, its knee. It only takes the others to have a hooley and him take a bit of a wrong turn/step and he's grounded again. I don't know if he is in pain, but his grumpiness definitely fluctuates, which makes me suspect that there are times he is :-(

I always promised that if he didn't come sound enough to have a decent quality of life that I would do the right thing by him... trouble is, he bounces back each time, and I've never yet known ENOUGH what the right thing/when the right time is.

To anyone else in this situation, I always say "you will know when enough is enough" trouble is, he's such a stoical stubborn fighter that I'm not sure he'll let me know, and I'm scared I will do it and regret it. But is that putting my feelings before his?And how do you know?

Hence a pony sob into mane moment on a Magic.

The Power of Pilates

2011-09-28T20:02:00.000+01:00

For all horses, but in this instance, Aero.

Since starting pilates, I have noticed that when riders get on, unless they keep their weight in their thighs to start with, he has started to dip his back. Something he has never done before.

He has a very tight back, and chiro used to have to dig her car key in his quarters before we'd get any sort of reflex before.

So, a dippy back, surely that's a bad sign, right? No, I don't believe so. I believe that if we xray'd his back we would see some sort of issue in the spinal processes. He actually has a lump along his spine under the saddle where I think it might be fused, and chiro and I have never really seen him use that part except in a lump!

Since starting the pilates, he now dips his back, and I think its because it has "unlocked " his back a bit and he is now able to mobilise his back like he couldn't before. I was worried initially, and what made me change my mind was when Simon asked a question and I said its a "reflex".

Aero was the horse nearest to demonstrate it on, so I ran my very short finger nail down his quarter and he flexed his back RIGHT up. He seriously couldn't do this before!

It might be something else that has suddenly improved his back, but in all honesty, the pilates is the only thing that has changed!! So now I am on a mission to strengthen his back, now we at least have some movement there, and then he will be good as new!!

So Aero is getting at least one short pilates session a day :-)

Are you having a laugh?

2011-09-26T10:00:00.001+01:00

A lesson in the meaning of feelings only lie! I feel like I have his shoulders so much better, yet looking at the vids, you can see I still don't have him on the balance beam quite enough, we still bulge out through our outside shoulder.

His canter felt really good, but trot didn't feel quite as off the forehand as it has done, and maybe the shoulders are the key.

Also, the sideways is a bit horrific! Over riding from me scooted his quarters out. What IS interesting is that on the right rein, he can step his inside hind through really smoothly and in a really big step, so no change in rhythm. On the left, his stride shortens and he takes a smaller step behind. So that ties in with the whole "can swing quarters away when halting on right rein, but would never do it on the left". And to what extent is it ME blocking him, and to what extent is it just harder for him?

So some of our work from now is going to focus on enabling him to step that left hind under and through as much as the right.

I like the cue to graze, and I like his softness, and my loose rein-ness. I dislike my bobbling body, not enough focus on me I fear!!

I still want "it" too bad

2011-09-25T18:36:00.000+01:00

And I don't even know what "it" is!!!

I asked Simon to point the video camera at Magic and I.... and I was literally stressed from the moment he arrived! What is THAT all about. I need video footage, to see where we are at, where we need to go next, what I am doing right, what I need to improve - but why does it stress me out so? I can ride in public, I can ride in front of an audience, that doesn't really bother me, but riding in front of a camera REALLY does. Is it because I am my own very worst critic???! Most probably!

So having been stressed even doing ground work (to prove its not the riding!) I got on, gave myself a stiff talking to, and used some of the sports psychology stuff I learned at the clinic. I gave my "scared of being video'd" self a persona. Then I told her to go and sit in the house and read a book whilst I rode! I visualised me/her on the sofa with the dog, a cuppa and a book in hand. (Obviously it was a clicker book!!)

It worked. Really well! To the point where I started lumping and decided that having done shoulder in in hand, we would not only go for it ridden, but in trot as well! It was, erm, interesting. I'd call it leg yield in places, and I need to learn, as a rider (as opposed to as a handler, which I find easier), that I can just "cue" for something and it will just happen, its not all about my having to block/hold in the right place- once I have trained him a cue (ie not yet!) I will get what I have trained.

I think I may need to give the "things are going t*ts up, time to get stressed" persona somewhere else to be too :-)

Especially as Simon and I rode this afternoon, and once down in the bottom wood, we had Echo hunting muntjac right past us hidden in the bracken, people riding on the bridleway, loads of dogs barking in the other woods. And then Echo escaped the Echo proof fence and I had to get high energy, happy/squeaky voice to get her back. Normally this would result in a complete Magic meltdown. But although he was rather tense in moments, he held it together and KEPT managing to control his emotions. Normally, consecutive issues like that would snowball and each would be more terrible than the one before. Today, he was MEGA!

I was also having to talk Simon through a lot of rope handling stuff on horse, and Magic just parked up and chilled. In fact, the worst thing he did all ride was whilst I was calling Echo back, he did his lean back and stretch so far his elbows are on the ground! Otherwise, his worst fault was doubling back to hoover up crab apples, and I'm going to let him off with that one!!

Simon taught Aero to halt, even when it all got stressful, Aero came back the best he ever has, and has cottoned on to Simon's rather unique tongue click!! :-)

Meanwhile, sicknote is feeling better. The nappy had a large section of blood on it, and so did his sole. But I can poke and prod his sole as hard as I can with fingers/hoofpick and he doesn't feel it, so now I am wondering if he found a nail or something, as I'm not sure even galloping on a stone on concrete could have drawn blood without making a section of sole sore??

Anyway, he's much sounder without nappy et al, so have braved leaving him without. I am treating it homeopathically , and hoping for the best.

Videos may follow if I can edit the darn things down to a reasonable size!

"Bad" behaviour

2011-09-25T11:03:00.001+01:00

Yep, more poo picking musings!

When using positive reinforcement, you are looking to reinforce the behaviour you DO want and ignore the behaviour you don't. By giving the horse something rewarding for doing a certain behaviour, you make it more likely that he will repeat the behaviour.

That bit is relatively easy, as long as you know exactly what it is you want to reinforce (and that isn't quite so easy sometimes!)

Often, the harder bit is ignoring the unwanted behaviour. Most of us have spent years in the cycle of "never let him get away with it". Whatever "it" might be.

My question today, is how on earth is the horse supposed to KNOW which behaviour is "bad"? There is no such thing, really as "bad" behaviour, that is just OUR perception of something.

Take a horse trying to graze when being ridden - why on earth would a horse think that is "bad"? Surely, they are designed to eat for most of their lives - how are THEY supposed to know they aren't allowed to when we are working with them? Is a tug on the reins and a kick going to train them not to do it??? (I think we all know the answer to that one!!)

So, its not about trying to explain to the horse that his behaviour is "bad" or wrong. Training is about getting the horse to do other behaviours instead of the one they are programmed to do. And to my mind, that is a lot easier when they are willing participants in the process, rather than pushed and shoved along!

So on that note, and update on Magic and my experiment with the Premack principle - yes it definitely works! We now have a cue to graze, which he is still very keen to do when working in hand.... but he knows that he waits for the cue. Once grazing, he knows if he feels me start to slide my hand down the rein, that it is time to put his head up, and he gets C/T for that too. Then when he next gives me good work, or we are near a lush bit of grass, he is cued to graze again.

Interestingly, having been REALLY keen to graze when ridden, he is now not bothered, if I offer him a graze, he tends to just lift his head back up for the C/T instead. He is also definitely LOWER energy when ridden, than when in hand - so the grazing in hand really helps me to drop his energy, which is likely to only be higher because I am a two left footed duffus when I am working him in hand :-)

How ironic

2011-09-24T10:39:00.001+01:00

Yesterday's post was about training Max to pick his feet up nicely.

Today's post begins with Max with a bleeding foot - because some git on a coloured horse charged madly up and down the bridleway at silly o'clock this morning, shouting to a cyclist with him (it would have been the combination of charging horse and shouting = retched hunt in pony minds).

They all galloped out the yard, and I can only think that Max galloped across the concrete barn and stood hard on a stone on the concrete.... Because he was standing/cantering on 3 legs in the field :-(

Did the git stop when he realised he was having that effect on the horses? Slow down? Did he hell.

Oops, there I go, blaming again!!

Anyway, I wandered over to him, feeling safe in the knowledge that he'd probably just wedged a stone in his foot....Got a bit closer and suddenly thought - he wouldn't still have a stone in his flat foot and even if he did, he's on the field so it wouldn't be causing him a problem anyway out here.... cue minor panic....Pick up foot to find bleeding sole. Oh dear. I did a good line in not major panic, but did march up field, go collect first aid stuff and headcollar and headed back down to get him.

On the plus side by the time I got back he was no longer waving it madly at me, and was weight bearing. He walked back up (the best leading ever!) and was fairly sound in walk on the grass.

I have run out of silage wrap, typically, so nappied and vet wrapped him up with plastic bags over the top. He was angelic, stood eating haylage without being tied up, without mugging my very full pockets, without waving his foot so much as ONCE.

Once I'd finished, he was pretty good walking on the concrete, the scalpings obviously dug in a bit more but he still chose to walk over them to go to the other barn. It was still bleeding when I wrapped it up, which is probably a really good thing. It has an escape route, so even if it does abscess, hopefully it will be draining straight away. I fully expect his bandage to be off by the time I get back from teaching, but will be armed with more silage wrap by then :-)

I did say to Simon, the downside to all this stone is that sooner or later someone will have a bruised sole! I suppose it was good that it was only Mr Thin Soles Max. Especially as the others will insist on galloping over the crushed bricks... and I can't bear to look!

On the plus side - they are all self trimming marvellously. I trimmed Magic's fronts about the first week we were here? And I've not trimmed anyone since. Magic has done a marvellous job of his hinds, and is now just getting started on his fronts again. Max has really self trimmed his hinds, but not his fronts, which look long and flared- proof that he needs them like that? The other two have just started a bit of tidying up.

What would you do....

2011-09-23T16:38:00.003+01:00

With a horse that kicks?

In my past, I would have first wanted to know WHEN it kicked.... Then I would have wanted to know its age, how much it "knew" about acceptable behaviour, etc. Then I would probably have trained it "not to" using negative reinforcement (removing an unpleasant stimulus when the correct behaviour is given eg pressure and release) and positive punishment (adding something unpleasant when incorrect behaviour is given). Only positive punishment very rarely works, as timing is crucial, and it generally does more harm than good. Obviously, it is totally incompatible with positive reinforcement http://www.diamondsintheruff.com/punishment.html)

I only ask, as I have just come across a big FAT training hole with Max. (Who else, haha!) When I got him, he was reluctant to have his feet picked up (obviously, he had sore feet!) and once you had a hind foot he would wave it around for a while before holding still. I dealt with this by just holding on until he held it still.

I didn't really train picking his feet up, he would always just about do it, so not bad enough to think needed more training - and to be honest, until clicker, what else was I going to do? Shove him off balance? Hard with a 17hand-er. Pull his foot off the floor? You try! So picking feet up became something that we got done, on a rather hit and miss basis. ie, somedays he picked all 4 up perfectly, some days he would not pick up one and we'd have a "discussion" about it. By discussion, I mean I would keep asking, try rebalancing him, and probably eventually get a bit peed off and walk him a step and grab leg whilst it was in air. Not exactly going to teach him much that way, am I?

Now he has always kicked out at the others, and he has always swung his leg in a "I'll kick you" threat when having a Mctimoney treatment. He never looked likely to kick at any other time, until I started getting the high energy Max.... but because we never got it (except for poor chiro) how was I going to train him not to do it? Maybe now I can!

Now he has started the donkey kick back when he gets high energy, but I want him to understand that he can TELL me he is worried, without resorting to that!

Today, I decided that I needed to go right back to basics and see just what we HAVE got and what we haven't. We have got "can I touch you all over without you worrying" as long as he is out of the yard away from the others. It is still a bit too stressful to be near them at the same time. Fair enough. His worry about the other horses is going to be a slow burn! I can stroke him all over his left side, and about half way down his right side, when he is in the barn with the others - but from saddle region back on right hind quarter is a no go zone....

Last week, I had started getting front leg pick ups - as he used to snatch them away, or rock back when I had foot in my hand. So we fixed that. Today I wanted to get touch all over, and then hind foot pick ups....which we did - but right hind (the one that would kick out if only one would...) was giving me a kick out not a pick up.

And then I had another light bulb moment - (well, two actually). One - the timing of the click is pretty important (doh) so I needed to click just as he shifted weight off that leg. Once I got better timing, I got results and he was able to pick the leg up softly. Two - how on EARTH is he supposed to understand what I want.... the whole foot thing is bonkers!! How do you train a flight animal, who needs his feet to run away, that you want one of them in your hand whilst he stands on the other three? Is leaning and pushing and pulling ever going to help him understand?

Sometimes I pity poor Maxwell, he was definitely put here to teach me this stuff, and sometimes I am VERY SLOW on the uptake. Magic, well he just knows me inside out, as I do him. We've done many things together, and I had to spend a LOT of time and effort initially on getting him ok to have his feet picked up - its the reason they are barefoot - we were riding Magic long before we could pick his feet up, let alone pick them out or trim them! That said, everytime I do his feet, I am working on undoing the poisoned cues I created when I did this! But all the other work I do with Magic helps, as he is sooo sure now that it is only going to be cues of +R and that there is no such thing as WRONG. He has so much more confidence generally, that feet are less of a deal (training holes aside).

Max hasn't got confidence. In me, in himself, in the others, in the outside world. He is getting better, but it is a slow process and I need to KEEP REMEMBERING that what I THINK makes sense DOES NOT necessarily make sense to a horse... I have to train a behaviour then put it on cue. And on that note, I'm off out to do a bit more!

And along those lines, http://www.thepryorfoundation.org/dufford.html just transpose dog for horse.... I could have written it! Except in my case I was trying to persuade people to train by clickering since I first started, even before I had the skills to help them!! I hope I'm a bit more with it now. But I definitely crossed over and am not crossing back! :-)

Reasons

2011-09-23T10:21:00.000+01:00

This morning's poo picking musing ;-)

Why is it, that I am always trying to find a REASON why a horse does something? For example, Magic is noise sensitive, yes it did take me 7 years to really figure it out (I may be slow, but I get there in the end!) But do I try to find a reason why? Yes. Might it be just part of who he is, having been feral until he was 3? Yes. Is WHY he is noise sensitive important in training him? Not really! What is important is figuring out how I can help him be calmer around noises. If I DID know of a reason, that *might* help, but its not as important as being able to split down training into appropriate bite size chunks for him, and we can do that without knowing the reasons why.

In some ways, that was a rubbish example....

But take Max. He was mashed up as a youngster - broken ribs, broken face, mashed teeth, smashed up knee. We know this. None of these things healed as they should have done. Now, every time I try to train something, (including just interacting with him) I am always saying things like "ooooh, this could be from his crash", or "I wonder if someone did x,y or z to him". Why????

It doesn't help me train him, it doesn't help me help HIM. What helps me help him is NOTICING his behaviours, and figuring out what he is trying to tell me he NEEDS through them, so I can train more appropriately. Why do I get hung up on the reasons bit of it?

Is it all part of the bigger picture "blame game" that most of us partake in? I know I have been a very active member of that game, and I am slowly clawing my way out of that pit, but sometimes I slide back in! It doesn't FEEL like I am laying blame when I want reasons for things, maybe it is just me being desperate to understand them in order to help them and to allow training to progress more smoothly?

On the other hand, maybe I just think too much????! :-)

Smug

2011-09-22T18:52:00.002+01:00

Me. At the moment. Not a nice attribute!

Ponypants came away from the hay stations and stood at the gate practically tapping his foot at me at 8am... I wasn't going to ride, but.... Oh go on then!

Another walk, trot, canter each way. Canter trans, well they are VERY different from before, and I haven't specifically trained them, he has just generalised the outline/balance/weight distribution. Clever fella.

Then we had a walk through the wood, accompanied by Echo on a deer-hunt. Exciting stuff, but he was totally in control of his emotions :-)

Back to the schooling field and I tested to see if he could generalise finger on hip to step away whilst I was on him? Yep, not as clean, but yep! And shoulders? Oh yes, shoulders are EASIER from on top.

Then back to the yard for a bit of pilates and another round of shoulders over/hips over. Loads better. Left hip stepping under is still the stickiest - so this will help his straightness loads! I do love that everything is everything else - ie you are training something fairly abstract (or so you think) and then you realise you need it for at least 8 other things! Excellent, talk about two birds/one stone.

Speaking of everything is everything else, just because I have gone belt and braces into clicker training, does not mean that that is how EVERYONE should do it. It is useful for training all sorts of behaviours, and you don't need to learn lots or change your whole paradigm (although I have!) to use a bit of it for certain things.

Lets face it, most of us treat our horses. But most of the time, the horse doesn't know why its been given something.... so learning theory means it may associate treats with, for example, nosing around in pockets, getting into your personal space, nudging you etc.

Combine with a click - and you can train what YOU want, (as opposed to either training what you don't want, or withholding food treats, or having to concentrate on diminishing behaviours you don't want) AND treat your horse at the same time.

And you get to have a joyful partner who comes to the gate and actively MAKES you take him out and ride him. (Sorry, did warn you I was being smug!) I have certainly never had a horse before who would independently come from the field, or away from hay/feed, just to work. It's pretty blinking cool!!

Walk in the woods

2011-09-21T18:32:00.002+01:00

Magic - we schooled first. Wow, this is really coming together now, I know I keep saying it, but he feels amazing and just gets more and more balanced. I keep thinking "this is balance and self carriage".... then next day I think, "no, THIS is balance and self carriage" and on it goes! Mustn't grumble, eh? :-)

Then I turned him towards the wood, and he thought about backing off, so we zig-zagged. After 2 or 3 zigs (or zags!) he just walked straight into the ride, and actually took the LONG route (the one he chose on the first day before it all got too much for him). No such issues today, in fact, coming home we had this walk, which the best way I can describe it is that I could FEEL his hind legs step far further under him, and his front end really slowed down so the back end could step through. Really bizarre, like being on a different horse entirely! Oh, and no rushing home.

Then I got off in the field to do some in hand, and decided to work on light touch on shoulder = step shoulder away, light touch on hip = step hip away. He sort of got hips, but it wasn't brilliant. I quit whilst we were ahead, and came back to yard, and did a little bit more - where he got hips straight away.

Then this evening I did hips first off, and he spun them away from me in a big hurry. Aah, no, not quite - good reactivity, but could we have a little less? And then we did shoulders - I remember doing shoulders before - at that time, we got step right from hand on left shoulder, but not the other way. Well today he got both ways, although he would always offer a step forward or a step back first, so more work to be done.

Aero - hock is normal enough that I can't tell if its just hair again.... must have been a random 24hr thing! So back to rock backs. He gets it. Its not a back lift yet, but we are getting some consistency and he is always at the gate awaiting his go, so its not too much hard work for him!

Max- curiouser and curiouser - Stay, works perfectly, even in barn and with others around. Get headcollar out and go to bring it near him = immediate demonstration of donkey kicks and squeals. Take headcollar away, stay, head lower, all work again. So I started with target the rope, then progressed to brushing him all over with the rope. Fine. Held rope out with a loop in it - he sticks his nose in the loop, then kicks off again. So fine if I put HIS nose in loop. Not fine if he puts it in himself.

I just need to find more ways to chunk this down. We have got "safety" behaviours now, so I can always get him back to calm with "at ease", "head lower" or "stay" and he knows he can offer any of these and get reinforced. This really helps, as actually it is getting him working on his own emotional control. He kicks off, he gets far enough away. He calms, he offers a behaviour, C/T and on we go.

The really good thing is that Aero and Magic were in the barn with us (unheard of also) and they obviously feel he is less of a threat than he used to be. Even when he was kicking off near them, they only avoided him slightly.

So, homework for Max is to more emotional control, de-poison the headcollar/rope/putting nose in something and then we really will be flying!!

Our First Clinic...

2011-09-21T16:32:00.002+01:00

Please tell everyone you know! We would love to see some locals coming along to it :-)

Ride With Your Mind Clinic

Saturday 29^th October 2011

Sport Horse Centre, Ryton,Warwickshire.

Ride With Your Mind coaching uses effectivetraining strategies to improve rider biomechanics, enabling your horse to workmore correctly. For more information on Ride With Your Mind, go to www.mary-wanless.com

What will theday entail?

· Private lesson given by either Jane Holderness or Gina Smith

· Video feedback from morning session

· Dismounted workshop including relevant exercises

· Joint sessions of “supervised” schooling - working in groups of 4, riders can take their learning back totheir horses, Jane and Gina will run the sessions so people can practiceindependently or have coach input as they choose.

Biomechanics coaching can work very well alongsideyour existing training methods – no need to throw the baby out with the bathwater!

Book Early Save £35

Deposit received by 8^th Oct, clinicfee just £70 (normal price £105)

Rider places strictly are limited, a restrictednumber of spectators places are available at a cost of £20.

For clinic information and a booking form contactGina

tel:07919 897271

email:gina@holistichorsecare.co.uk

For more informationabout Jane Holderness, visit her blog

www.magicsownlittleworld.blogspot.com

For more information about Gina Smith, visit her website

www.holistichorsecare.co.uk

Overnight or day stabling is available at theSports Horse Centre, contact Pat

www.sporthorsecentre.homestead.com

A horse is a horse, of course of course...

2011-09-20T16:16:00.003+01:00

A horse is a horse of course! (Thanks Mr Ed)

Max was much better today, we did headcollar in the other barn, then led to the main barn and although he had moments, he came back down really well. So am pleased with progress there.

Aero, I thought he had a bit of a puffy hock yesterday, but he is soooo hairy and there wasn't heat to feel and no injury, so I did my best ignoring it method. But today it is definitely a bit fat on the outside, and a bit swollen into the top of his cannon bone. Whether a strain/bang/sting, I don't know but I can't see anything and he isn't bothered by it, although I haven't trotted him up. Shall do so later if rain stops!

Magic is back to being the wonder horse. Got on in yard, rode to wood, went round wood. He took me, MUCH less sticky. Did have one squeally canter off moment, but in a good way, no bronks!

Then back to the paddock for a walk trot canter each way, which was just gorgeous! Then off I got for some shoulder in practice. I could barely get him to graze AT ALL!

Finished on WWYLM which was the best, most with me ever.

So Premack's Principle works, as does going for a ride first to let him let off steam!!

Monday's Moments in Time

2011-09-19T16:16:00.002+01:00

Aero - did a bit more rock back - I swear his top line is changing already - he seems to be losing the musculature behind the saddle - where it was compensating for him not engaging abs and lifting back. If it really is that quick I am impressed!

Magic - came through first and we went to the field and worked on quite a few things (if I actually break it down)

Putting grazing on cue, (and not grazing when not cued!)
Shoulder in in hand
WWYLM both reins
Halt when I halt rather than one step beyond (oooh, sounds like a Madness track to me!)
Being able to go from WWYLM circle, to straight along long side in shoulder in, to back to circle.

The hardest part? He seems to have got inconsistent with his nose height - I suspect partly due to the grazing, and the fact that I will cue for head down to graze sometimes, but not always.

BUT shoulder in, interspersed with grazing breaks, has REALLY chilled him out. Its like we have found the "off" switch for the high energy Magic... now if we could only find the same for Maxwell!

We came back and finished with some pilates. He didn't want a drink, so he attempted to put his foot in the water bucket, or push it with his face (like he does with his football!) But when I opened the gate he went into the yard of his own accord, so I don't feel so bad about "ending" the session.

Max - well, given that I worked the other two first, I managed to get them both through without help from Max. Aero was quite close to Max in the barn, and he let me get Aero while he "stayed", so that is a really useful behaviour.

After I'd finished with the others I decided I should do a short session with him, so got the headcollar out. Started with "at ease" and "stay". Perfect. Brought out headcollar, and he stuck his nose in C/T. Took headcollar off nose and away each time. On third go, just congratulating us both on another behaviour in the bag, and he suddenly went high energy, scraping, kicking back (donkey kicks!) etc.

If I put him in stay and walked away, he would immediately stop, calm, wait for C/T. Weird. So did a few more stays.... fine. Brought headcollar out = scraping/kicking back again. So I thought how can I break it down more?

Ended up with just a rope, in a loop. Moved it all around his head, fine, put loop out for him to put his nose in - he puts nose straight in, but its like flipping a switch and he's immediately high energy again. Me thinks the poor boy is in HUGE amounts of conflict here. I need to try to break it down even further. How many months ago was it I first said the head collar was a poisoned cue? Well at least now we have sorted through so much stuff that it is for now all about the head collar. Even bridle gets less reaction.

So watch this space for progress. I might try and video him tomorrow, as the difference between calm "staying" Max, and "OMG I just put my head in a headcollar" Max is quite extreme!

Turning back time?

2011-09-19T15:56:00.000+01:00

I am very happy with where I am going on my journey, but sometimes I feel it was soooo much easier when I didn't SEE quite so much.

Looking for teeny tiny pilates moves in your (rather rotund) pony's abs does rather tune your eye in to seeing small chunks of behaviour that I would have steamrollered right through before.

Sometimes I think that I have chosen this journey, so I should just get on with it. But I can't not see things now I can see them. (Confused? You will be!) Talk about the scales lifting from my eyes. And the trouble is, that I still wish I could SEE more that I do myself with outside eyes - its so much harder when you are actually the body on the ground. But I see things in other horses that I just don't want to see.

I seriously need to find some coping mechanisms, and soon, or they will be getting the straight jacket out for me and carting me away whilst I wear a pair of pants on my head, two pencils up my nose and say "wibble" a lot. (Ref Blackadder).

On the plus side, I taught a lovely client today who has done a bit of clicker with her horse, but not recently. Today her horse was getting "stuck" leading - but as soon as she started asking him to step forward by running her hand down the rein (as we had done with the clicker), he would step forward perfectly, despite not a clicker in sight! Mega! :-)

Up downs

2011-09-18T19:15:00.001+01:00

In more ways than one!

This morning, I took Magic out round the cones. He was a bit high energy and although doing everything asked, he was trying to lead the dance, rather than us moving together.

I got on, and we worked on our freely forwards away from the cones - this is difficult, as going round the cones is highly reinforced, hence why would anyone want to leave them?

We got into the wood really well, so I got back off, intending to go and do more cones. Magic started goggling imaginary bogey men, so we were able to work on head lowering. This worked really well, but I started to get frustrated as when is he EVER going to be able to focus on me consistently, rather than IBMs?

This is a good demonstration of my inability to see the improvement (headlowering consistently when IBMs in the vicinity? Priceless.) And focus on the negative. Darn IBMs.

We came back to the cones, and he was high energy (surprise surprise, I was frustrated, what else is he going to be?) So I had one of "those" moments. My head said to take him home and do pilates and end there. My heart said "get on and RIDE". Now even as we did capture the saddle (perfectly, and joyfully!) I knew it could be a train wreck as I wasn't sure I'd be able to control my own emotions.... WRONG time to decide to get on....

But equally, I know often getting on is a good thing, as we seem to have MORE understanding when I am on, than on the floor. I think overall I have trained him in the past FAR more successfully when riding him than I ever did on the ground. And my frustration is far more likely to surface in groundwork, and maybe he knows this and its why he is more high energy with me on the ground?

Anyhow. I got on. Bad decision, and I was berating myself about it, but still did it.

And then? We walked, trotted (up downs - get it?) and cantered around our schooling area (ignoring cones!) in the BEST balance ever. His trot was so floating, and there was such cadence that it wasn't bouncy and I felt like a proper rider! Oh, and did I mention he was a headcollar with reins for me to see if the bit made a difference?

Honestly. I came in crying. Mainly joyful, but plenty of "you stupid numpty, you would have put him back AGES if you had lost the plot". But it was one of those gut instinct moments, and it had been RIGHT!

Then, tonight, I decided to go again with bridle. Well, I got on in the yard, and we hacked over to the schooling field. Immediately worked in walk, trot and canter, even working on downward transitions (rather than using the click to stop!). He got plenty clicks. He got plenty cues to graze. He was just awesome. And he DIDN'T get progressively more high energy and "trot, must trot" like he used to.

Then I got off and we started shoulder in up the long side. Each ok bit got C/T. Each fabby bit got C/T/cue to graze/ wait for head up/C/T start shoulder in again. He was sooo with me, and grazing kept his energy low, and waiting for him to head up gave him some control. And we were beginning to dance :-)

We ended there and I came in as happy as larry. He got a bit of pilates in the yard, and gave me the BEST back lifts yet. And then I combined pilates with hand up for head lower, so I can start to get head not drawing back and up in pilates.... He is soooo clever - just combining two cues and bingo!

Then he tried to paw the water bucket over as he didn't want session to end. I have to find a way to let him know session is ending so I don't get him grumpy about it.

Memo to self - right rein - better shoulder in as easier to keep shoulders. Left rein, he would step out through shoulder, but fix that and he finds it harder to step left hind under him so would stop rather than step through. Walking with him, he is bulging his ribcage left and towards me on left rein. Right rein would become leg yield on a diagonal due to the fact that he is ALWAYS stepping his right hind through (ie even when asking for halt in hand, he would step right hind under and be at angle. Interesting correlation to in hand, and riding.

Meanwhile, Max did an amazing job - he stood in barn in "stay" and let me go and collect Aero, put head collar on THEN return to C/T him. And then later, he let me do the same with Magic. This is the BIGGEST of big deals, I'm telling you!

And Aero started to "get" pilates. It is starting with a rock back, but I saw the light go on in his eyes :-) We only do very short bursts as I need him to get the strength in his back before offering me more. But really good stuff!

Risk

2011-09-17T08:03:00.002+01:00

"To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.

To weep is to risk appearing sentimental.

To reach out to another is to risk involvement.

To expose feeling is to risk exposing your true self.

To place your ideas and dreams before a crowd is to risk their loss.

To love is to risk not being loved in return.

To live is to risk dying.

To hope is to risk despair.

To try is to risk failure.

But risks must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.

The person who risks nothing does nothing, has nothing and is nothing.

He may avoid suffering and sorrow, but he cannot learn, feel, change, grow, or live.

Chained by his certitudes, he is a slave; he has forfeited his freedom.

Only a person who risks is free."

- Anonymous

My biggest risk is always "To try is to risk failure". I say to people all the time, to err is human, and that mistakes help our learning.... but it doesn't apply to myself apparently. So trying things, particularly, a different method - a step outside the box, and putting my neck on the line, is a big deal to me. Not because I don't think it will work, but because I will beat myself up if I do something "wrong". Sigh. I am working on it, I mean, how outside the box can I possibly get??! But it is still hard. One day I will feel I AM the last line of the poem!

Meanwhile, I had the worst of all possible news from the stud. Baby pony was castrated this week prior to coming home, and then 2 hours later got complications and had to be put to sleep. RIP little one. I am very sad and feel guilty, but I am also grateful that it happened when he was in the hands of professionals and got the best care possible. Run free smart fella.

The Perils of Grass

2011-09-16T15:04:00.003+01:00

As in, "you want me to WORK on this GREEN stuff?"

As soon as I recognise, figure out and fix one training hole, I find another to keep me occupied!

Their field is old set-aside. So its rough, and boring, and what fresh green shoots there were (not many) are eaten up first, leaving long tough grass to chew on. Perfect for their feet, not so perfect for their sweet teeth!

I then set up the cones in a circle on the only paddock on the farm with proper grass.

And what happens? It becomes too much of a draw for Magic. He's fine when ridden (I have always been guilty of letting him stop for snackettes) and only eats when we have stopped.

But working in hand has got more difficult over the last two days as he's got more desperate to eat the green stuff.

So I have decided that rather than me get frustrated and him get stressed (when he gets it wrong, ie eats) we will try to use the Premack principle.... (as well as training him that cues to allow him to graze, and to stop him from grazing).

The Premack Principle states that high-probability behaviour reinforces low-probability behaviour. That means, high probability is what the horse wants (in this case grass), low probability is what I want, ie him not to eat grass but to actually do some work!

I did two sessions - one this morning, which got a bit dull as I hung out and waited for him to finish grazing for long enough to ask him something! But each successive snack got shorter, and I was experimenting with leaving him grazing rather than asking him to stop. He got C/T each time he looked up at me, and then we did a bit of walking, C/T then I cued him to graze.

He was quite tense in between times, I suspect because he was in conflict- surely I wasn't REALLY going to let him graze with no repercussions?

Towards the end of the first session he was getting really good, but interestingly far better on left rein than right, more tense on right rein. His motivation was MUCH higher, but he was making the odd snatch for grass which was tricky to know how to deal with, so I just did my best job of being a post.

Second session I only took him out in his headcollar, and whether from the previous session, or from the fact that he didn't have his tack on, but he was loads better immediately. Grazed when cued to do so, but only a few mouthfuls before being ready to go again. I figured out where the decent grass was (according to Magic) and made sure we had a good moment there so I could cue him to graze there.

He came in really happy and so did I! More proof that a little of what you fancy does you good - and that as a trainer, getting frustrated solves nothing, but sometimes looking at things backwards solves a lot!!

Meanwhile Max was able to do "stay" and "at ease" and head lowering - and we have now managed 3 days without him attacking anyone or marching round trying to guard all the feeders. Plus, he seems much calmer, he is out grazing more, and doesn't come and get in my face if I go out to poo pick or to catch one of the others. Marvellous!

Control Freak

2011-09-14T10:06:00.002+01:00

That's me!

I think I have always been a control freak, ask anyone who knows me :-)

And for me, that was one of the hardest things to "give up" when I become a clicker trainer.

Part of the traditional methods with horses, is the controlling aspect - if nothing else, we micro-manage them. "Ride between leg and hand" for example - implies a level of both leg and hand. How many lessons have you had where you were told "bend*, more bend, no, he needs more bend" etc

*insert word of choice here - leg, contact, jump, roundness etc etc

So - how does it feel when you give up micro-managing them and invite them to offer behaviours....? A bit scary at times.... and its a big leap of faith.

But I feel sooo much happier in my own skin for doing it. Yes, I have times when I feel "I can't do this", and I have times when I feel like I have messed up a training session big time, and the horse has left frustrated... but the longer I do this work, the more confidence I have, that we will still come out next session in a BETTER place than we left off....

I never felt that way training horses before. It was always about testing the theory, nope, ok, revisit it, fix it again, test, yep, works, now move on (and if I got to the move on part of the session, then I was doing very well!)

I admit to not being the BEST horse trainer, but I have "trained" plenty in my time, and I still always felt, especially when schooling, that it was just about doing many many repetitions - repeat the circle, try to improve it, repeat the shoulder in, try to improve it.... it was all about what the rider has to constantly be doing, to get the horse to do certain things. It wasn't about the horse LEARNING to do things so the rider can just ASK.

Hence, it was good for a control freak like me!!! But bad for morale, for both the horse and the human!

So I think, on balance, I prefer having relinquished control in order to gain a willing partner. OK, occasionally I don't like his opinions much... but although I may have FELT in control before, with all my micro-managing, I never really was, was I? And now, he gets to express his opinions, and when ours match, we have a joyful time. When they don't I can find something I need to train comes out of it. So it truly is a win win.

Quote of the day

2011-09-12T09:26:00.003+01:00

"There comes a time in your life when you have to let go of all the pointless drama and the people who create it and surround yourself with people who make you laugh so hard that you forget the bad and focus solely on the good. After all, life is too short to be anything but happy." - Karl Marx.

Max- we practiced our new found patience - my goodness, he's GOT it!! Its more difficult in the field than in the yard (I didn't intentionally take him to the field, it just sort of happened in the process!) but he still got it. Hand up palm out (like to a dog) and "stay". Then I walk away backwards to start, but then also forwards, ie turning my back on him... which is more difficult.

Presumably because he understands the cues that are held for the duration (ie for the time my hand is up, you stay) but not those that ask for a behaviour which should then be held until you are released..... so we are now onto training that as well - the difficulty THERE is that teaching him a release cue is likely to result in a Max in my face... so for the moment we click, then walk back to him to treat.

I think I need to recap my learning on that one, and train those "holding" cues on other behaviours first..... In fact, there we have another training hole - I think that's something I struggle with with both of them!

We also did some handling, me touching his face, holding his head and him allowing it. By the end of the session, his eyes were the softest I've ever seen them, the worry had all gone out of him. I am soooo excited now :-)

Magic showed my friend a bit of pilates.... at first he couldn't see Magic do anything, so I pointed it out to him (the belly lift, back lift) and then he said "how on earth do you train that?" Aha! Well, there is a good question - try training it ANY other way than positive reinforcement -I'd love to hear of another way to train it!!!!

Then we went off round the cones... I am re-watching the 3-flip-3 dvd so we are improving this, but we have a bit of tension if we go to hip-shoulder-shoulder so we are working our way through that too (the tension comes in the form of his hind leg a bit straight, and his step over too fast....)

Then we showed off and did a bit of trot in hand - well, he is soooo getting stronger at that - he is starting to work out how to trot at my walk speed whilst I jog! And then we finished on a bit of capture the saddle - which soooo makes me smile.

I think he deliberately comes over to the mounting block and stops far away and at an angle, just so he can take the most enormous side steps to get the saddle (or his back) lined up with me and the block! I think this is my favourite thing at the moment!

We also did some more hands on head, and he was fine from the moment I asked, so he's learned that from yesterday - and as a reminder that everything is everything else - he put his own bridle on PERFECTLY TWICE - and I'm sure that's because I've now trained my hands around his face, as well as him taking the bit.

I love that I keep finding tiny fixes that make a big difference, and that despite being such a lumper for such a long time, I am now able to go back and split the behaviour down a bit further to achieve even better results!

I think my aim of being able to go and get any of them, and take them out of the yard, without Max intervening may well be acheivable before Tino gets here!! Whoop!!

‎

The Power of Blogdom

2011-09-12T09:06:00.006+01:00

I've recently started reading back through the Alexandra Kurland's old posts on theclickthatteaches group - some are on her website http://www.theclickercenter.com/ClickerBlogJan2006.html

And I found this piece about keeping a training journal.... (bold is my addition!)

"So a couple of general comments about journals. I'm not sure that it matters initially what form they take. The important thing is that you get in the habit of keeping a journal. Over time you will see what information you missed that you wish you had included. The journals will give you clues to your training. They may even tell you in a quite surprising way why you encounter certain recurring issues with your horse.

For example, do you write in one long paragraph, or do you divide your writing up into smaller segments. In other words are you a lumper or a splitter? If you write in one long, never-ending, never-pause-for-breath style, perhaps that is also how you train, and just perhaps your horse finds it a bit overwhelming. If you find your thoughts scattered all over the place, if you jump from one comment to another without ever really finishing a sentence, perhaps that is also how you organize a training session. Something to think about.

Years ago I taught a science lab. I found that the students who could write up a lab description had no problem with the work itself. The students who lacked writing skills, also struggled with lab work. They couldn't work their way progressively through a series of steps. I saw a very strong correlation between their ability to sort out a process and work systematically, and their writing skills. I was not a popular instructor because I insisted on complete sentences in their lab reports! No easy grades from me! (I'm not sure I should include that in this post. I don't want people to become self-conscious about their writing! But I do want people to give some thought to how they go about their horse time. Is it scattered and unfocused? Are you a reactive trainer? Or are you at the other extreme, so detailed oriented that you never see the forest for the trees? Your journal amy tell you all that and more.)

So journals are important. The writing process reveals more than just what went on in a training session. It may also reveal why we run into certain patterns of difficulties. And the journals also reveal our patterns of thought. What are we focusing on? As you thumb through your journal what does the first line tend to be?

"I had a super session." "Another great night." "Another great night." "Another GREAT night. I detect a trend."

That's what I found when I opened my journal at random. This is a place where you get to practice clicker training. That means that this is a place where you get to see what you focus on. Are you using your journal to grump about the boarder who left her stuff out all over the place? Are you spending your time describing all the things your horse did wrong? Or are you focusing on your training successes? Those training successes may be how you responded to your horse. Maybe he was grabbing at the lead rope. In the past you might have smacked him for that, but now you view it as communication, information. You used your training session to figure out why he felt the need to grab at the lead rope. Your journal is helping you come up with a plan for dealing with the situation. That's thinking like a clicker trainer. And that's what the journal allows you to practice.

There is much more to be said about this, but I will save it for another day."

Alexandra Kurland

theclickercenter.com

I went back and read yesterday's post about Max and how he caught on really quickly to the "at ease" whilst I step away and treat the others - and the penny dropped about WHY he is so evil to them (I knew already, but just couldn't really SEE it from his point of view)....

His whole outlook changed when I was stepping away and clicking both but treating the other horse first.... it was because he KNEW his treat was coming - so its not about wanting to be boss (we knew that), or about wanting the others to have nothing, its about him being desperate to have SOMETHING. And the grass is always greener, yadda yadda, so wherever I go, he thinks the pile of hay I am nearest is best, etc etc.

So maybe I need to take the big BRAVE step, and reinforce him for being there and at ease, and not getting in the way WHENEVER I go and get one of the others. I'm excited now, I think this might be a key point!!

The power of blogdom indeed! Well done Max, well done AK for pointing it out to me, and well done me for trying to figure him out! :-)

The light at the end of the tunnel

2011-09-11T14:13:00.002+01:00

Saturday - rode Magic with P and Dan. Magic was really good, even down in the bottom wood. We had a splash in the lake and then went and had a mooch through trying to find new rides.... This is a bit tricky when the bracken is as high as an elephant's eye!

Magic was enjoying fern surfing and exploring, until Echo stumbled upon a muntjac, whereupon she took off after it yelping like a true hound. Cue some significant tension from Magic. Paired with attempting to find the shortest way back to a track, and you have me ducking and diving avoiding the branches, whilst clicking for calm!

Once we got back to our new route, he calmed significantly, and once out on the track he was back to normal. So we went from ooooh shheeeeeet to oh good in not very long at all. Yep, emotional control is DEFINITELY getting programmed in well :-) Dan meanwhile managed to stay REALLY calm as we bounced around him, so he wins the emotional control prize!

Once back in the top wood, we were joined by an Echo (still hunting and yipping) but Magic held it together really well, even when we then met walkers on the other side of the fence.

Really pleased with the boy.

Aero did more pilates. He is so cute, he is starting to get frustrated with me now when I don't ask for something.... so we definitely need to do more freeshaping so he learns that he has to OFFER stuff and then work out what is getting re-inforced.

Max - did a couple of sessions of "stand in the yard/barn, with the other horses around (but not close) and manage to either do nothing, or don't mug me, or ears forward, but NOT pose, headlower, backing or anything else that is supposedly on cue, and therefore won't get reinforced if I haven't asked for it". Sounds complicated? I think he thought so, but he's REALLY getting it. This really is a breakthrough week for a Maxwell (and therefore for me too!)

Sunday - Magic and I went hacking with P and Dan. Even better than yesterday (Echo was tired after 3 hours of chasing muntjac yesterday and stayed home!) We didn't go play in the lake, but we took the new ride around the lake.

It is really windy, and the trees make it sound sooooo bad, but riding through the woods it SOUNDS windy, but its just like a light breeze!! And the horses are fine with it. The whole place is sooo sheltered by the woods that it could be a hurricane out there and I'm not sure we'd notice. One of the best things so far about living here :-)

Magic has a funny lump on his face that I am keeping an eye on, not sure if its teeth or what, but it doesn't bother him, and its not always there.... so I usually put my hands on his face either side to feel it occasionally. He has been telling me for ages that he ACTUALLY doesn't like me touching his face - and then it twigged - he doesn't like headcollar on, and only likes bridle on now as he can do it himself, and has always HATED nosebands, anything other than a cavesson = broncs.

So I decided to fix this training hole too. And we started reinforcing him for standing and letting me touch his head. How did I ever not see I had a head shy horse? Well because he would never dream of showing me before now! I love that I am finding new training holes to fix with Magic practically each day, it is very rewarding.

Once he realised he would be reinforced for it, he quickly let me touch him wherever - and that brought me to the realisation that he HAS always tried to avoid my hand on his head before, but just in a quiet way. I know he's never let me wipe his eyes for example, but I thought that was it.

This really is everything is everything else, and the never ending peeling of the onion!

Then Aero and I did a bit more pilates. He is still not clear enough on freeshaping, so we are just having frequent little short sessions, as he will find it harder than most with his back.

Then onto Max. He was in the main barn, and Magic was in front of him. As I approached, Magic came to see me, and narrowly missed a bite on the bum. Fortunately Magic just walked straight out onto the bricks, where Max didn't want to follow. Handy that! :-)

I'm also relieved that despite this frequent pairing of "mum arrives" with "get beaten up by Max", none of the others associate me with bad evil Max attacks.

So then Magic is one side of me on the stones, and Max is the other in the barn. I start clicking Max for at ease - and then decide to move away from him, put my hand on Magic's head, click for them both, treat Magic, then back to Max for his.

This worked well, and made me realise that what I need most is to be able to catch ANY of them, without Max chasing them off me. So then as Aero was at the back of the barn, I C/T Max for at ease, and gradually increased it so I could step away, then walk away, and still C/T him for staying stood where I left him. By the end I could put my hand up to Max to stay, walk all the way to Aero. Click. Treat Aero. Walk back to Max and treat Max. No way could I have done this a few days ago.....

Proof that one of the key things for Max was learning to accept that the treat IS coming... it might take a while (as in my slowing delivery) and it might not come immediately (if he is coming to me) but you WILL get it.

I was very proud of him. He had horses either side of him at one point, and he didn't try to attack them to get them away from me ONCE. Now we just have to build this up so we can ALWAYS do it!

There really is a BIG light at the end of the tunnel now!!!

Friday blogday

2011-09-09T15:14:00.004+01:00

Aero - we continued headlowering - slowly reducing the nodding dog syndrome - working towards pilates to try to encourage him to strengthen his back. He worked out that I wanted a rock back, and is starting to try to offer things to see what gets reinforced!

Max- We have patience!!! And we had a walk down the drive, around the front garden and back. And we were cool about waiting for treats, and I THINK he has figured the new default behaviour is do nothing but look bored. Yippeee! He can look bored for quite a while before starting to chuck behaviours at me :-)

Magic, excellent session, video'd it but as usual we are a bit of a dot in the distance. Really really pleased with him as its the best all round he's been. Really lovely trot work, getting better on the left rein, but still not as good as the right rein (mainly I think because he loses his outside shoulder so easily - it feels the same if he can really keep his outside shoulder.)

Finished with a bit of capture the saddle - I haven't really had to do it with him before, as he would always just lead up to the wall at Mum's. But now we have poxy step to get on from, I wanted him to learn to bring me the saddle - and boy did he learn it quick. Watch the end bit, and you will see him side step VERY carefully until he has positioned the saddle (and only once did he get too close and nearly knock me off!)

Such a clever boy!

Then Max and I rode round the woods with P and Dan. Max was a lot more chilled, apart from feeling that its ok to attack Dan even when I am RIDING him. Oh my. Its a good job I have a Magic, as between Max and Aero pulling faces and being horrid, I'd think it was me! Fortunately, I know it is actually because they are very insecure when being ridden as they feel captured/hemmed in, whatever, and they are just showing their insecurities.

Really would like Max to stop being so evil before little un arrives..... I don't want him mashed up in his first week!

Emotional control

2011-09-08T20:11:00.002+01:00

You, me, EVERYBODY!

This is such a big topic. Having started down this road with Max, I have now realised that Magic doesn't have much emotional control once he has heard the click - I am just lucky that he is so polite (or people phobic!) that he wouldn't get pushy about it.... BUT I think fixing this tiny piece of high-energy-ness will affect our whole training, just as it has done for Max.

So I am now fixing that training hole in a BIG way! :-)

Magic now knows that if he turns his head towards me once I have begun treat delivery, then I will hold the treat in my hand until he puts his head straight ahead again.... generally he does this in pose, but as long as he is not coming towards me, he will get the treat.

Max - well he now has infinite patience in waiting for his treat to come to him - so emotional control is beginning to work there, BUT, I still have a horse that will chuck many many behaviours at me. I am currently working on "at ease" or do nothing.... now I am incapable of doing that either, but its going to be Max's new default behaviour..... I hope! We are up to about 1 second between giving treat for previous click, and him starting to chuck behaviours at me. Its going to be a slow old road I feel!

And it has clarified even more for me, that if you aren't in it for the duration/long haul - if you aren't going to embrace the whole positive reinforcement approach, it may well be better NOT to open that particular pandora's box..... better a consistent approach where both participants know where they stand.

If anyone else had a Maxwell, they might have questioned their sanity with this approach! But I know that he has always been one screwed up fella, and if we can give him the confidence that he doesn't need to guard his resources pratically at the expense of his LIFE then there's a happy chap in there just waiting to get out :-)

Had a great in hand session with Magic this evening, working around the cones, which really brought home the fact that he needs emotional control when treat delivery happens, otherwise this can be the moment when the energy gets HIGHER. This maybe why sometimes we get more up tempo through the session even when there aren't outside influences scaring his little pants off him!

Its been a manic week, I might actually get to ride tomorrow..... fingers firmly crossed.

Oh, such a perfect day,

2011-09-02T12:54:00.002+01:00

I'm glad I spent it with you (boys!)

Mum came to ride Aero, and I decided to take Max and see how he felt about life. Well, he was fab - we had flexion and softness of poll, not all the time, but plenty of clickerable moments.

No excessive energy, although he was definitely forward, it was not in tension. We went round both woods and he led the way in some places, and was happy to let Aero lead in others. You certainly wouldn't know he hadn't been ridden since January (was it? Something like that)

And all the posing has created so much topline its like sitting on the top of a drum! He really has soooo much back!! But the big deal was he was calm, and mooched along without rushing and without being his old shut down dead to the leg self. So all good.

Then I took Magic with P and Dan. Magic was *cross* as he had been left on his own til LAST - as P took Dan round to work on wwylm whilst she waited for us. OMG do we not realise how IMPORTANT a Magic is?

So needless to say, he was VERY pleased to come through and have tack on!

We went round the top wood, then down to the bottom wood, but went the opposite way round so we could trot up the long stretch on the back section. Then on our way back, we were muttering about how we really need to start finding routes in this wood - so turned left back into the wood when we were about to leave it, and the boys took us on a scenic route to the other side, to meet the track at the opposite edge. Cue plenty giggling and "noooooo" as they tried to take us places where we had to duck/get pulled through branches, etc. We managed to find our way back to the track!

Then we were feeling smug and settling ourselves to mooch home, when Magic struck off the main track to see where the digger had made another path.... Now I know this goes to the lake, and no further.... but I let him go and investigate....

He pops quietly over the little ditch, with absolutely no ask from me!! The littlest he's EVER jumped a ditch, and certainly the first time he's ever not baulked at one first!

Then we get to the big bank for the lake. The only way up onto the bank is by climbing up the steep bank AND stepping over a fallen tree, all near the old grate from the over flow which you would imagine was a bit scary? Magic had a look, decided there was a way round (there wasn't) attempted to show me we could jump at totally unjumpable log (surrounded by trees and the bank) to get on it. I faced him back at the only possible option (apart from turning around, which was an open offer!)

And he walked straight up the bank and over the log. So now we are on the high bank around the (currently nearly empty) lake. As we wait for Dan to brave it (which he does, most calmly). Magic turns left and starts trying to descend INTO the lake in a place where there IS water!!

OK, who are you, and what have you done with my scaredy pone?

I manage to persuade him to walk along the bank a bit further, and then he is straight down the bank onto the dry lake bed, and marches straight over to where there IS water for a proper wade and dig (me now on red alert for rolling!)

Dan comes down to join us and we both have a rather tense few minutes letting them walk around in the water waiting for the inevitable knee tremble as they try to roll. But they were good.

Then we turn away and have to get back up the bank - but the only place not too steep means we then have to walk along the recently created bank which is thick clay, and directly over a large, flappy, full of water tarpaulin. Something that could NEVER have happened until we started clickering!

Magic climbs the bank, drags me to the tarp, sniffs it once nonchalantly and walks straight over it without batting an eye. I am nearly falling off in shock and surprise by now!!!

Dan follows, being a bit more careful, and we make our way home trying not to sink through the clay!

Honestly, the most fun you can have on a horse when the horse is actively WANTING to go adventuring. Magic had just the best time! And obviously had rather a lot of C/T on the way round for his truly incredible bravery. I would never have thought I could get him to do that, even now. But he has SUCH control and is soooo much happier, that he will offer behaviours - even ones previously that I could barely get him to do (like ditches, and especially getting within about a mile of a tarp!)

So, quite literally a perfect day, and one to remember!

Hysterical

2011-09-01T08:14:00.003+01:00

Or am I just easily tickled these days?

I took the camera out to video Magic.... I have not got a tripod, and we don't have handy fence posts around the place like we had at the old yard.... so I balanced the camera on its case! Seemed to work...? No?

Nice bit of capture the saddle at the beginning. And some great walk.... you may struggle to see much of the gorgeous trot, (snigger) but today the right rein was foot perfect, and even the left rein was MUCH improved, you may have to take my word for it....! It gets less good each trot, so my advice to me is don't push it!!!

Then we walked around the top wood. Although he wasn't keen on going away from his cones (is he ever?) he obliged, and was totally calm and came home as least as softly as he went out, no hurrying at all!

Yesterday and today I have worked on Max's head lowering. Yesterday I brought him through to the little yard where the others aren't, and he was excellent, but I really noticed how he is AT me for his treat the moment he hears a click. So not only did I slow down delivery, but I actually put my hand up to his head to block him coming into my space with my free hand. This worked really well and by the end he was keeping his head straight ahead even when my hand went to pocket and I slow motioned the treats. He definitely HAS the patience in there, I just need to stay consistent and not let him speed me up!

Then today, I went to start working him in the big barn, surrounded by hay feeders. The other horses had all gone out into the field to graze. Max was fine about this and I was pleased as it meant he wouldn't get high energy about them....

So we started, and straight away he was more high energy than yesterday (bummer, I thought). He would scrape, and run backwards, and then even started the standing bucking, kicking out - almost like he needs SUCH a release of tension.... He was still very polite to me, but was kicking out like an idiot. I tried moving him to a different place, but he actually lashed both hinds out and caught the pole of the pole barn (you know, one of the ones held up by fresh air?) so I decided that was not a good idea. At one point he backed himself up so he had wedged his bum against it... he had the whole barn and yard to back up in, but he chose to back up into something.... what is he trying to tell me??

So we came out of the barn - immediately different horse. Calm, headlowering, backing when required. Soft eyes, no tension held in body. Increase duration of head lower. No scraping. Certainly no un-asked for backing and no leaving the floor of the hind legs.

Sooooo, he finds BEING in the barn stressful. Its enclosed spaces, or open spaces surrounded by food containers because he still has to guard the resource even if it is empty?

Well that's very interesting.... what was that I said last post about everything is information?

So Max and I need to get everything off pat in places where he can cope... before taking it to places where it is harder for him. But firstly, I need to find out how he feels about all the different environments. Is the yard only ok, or is the paddock ok too? Etc etc. So much to learn to help this fella, it feels like a mountain to climb. But I WILL help him learn to cope with life, it is not fair to do anything else!

Its all just information...

2011-08-30T13:29:00.002+01:00

I need to take a leaf out of my own book, and accept that when they offer behaviours that we maybe don't want, or feel like we didn't ask for, it is just information - information that we have been unclear in our ask, that we haven't trained the behaviour, that we haven't put the behaviour on cue..... or any number of other reasons why we get behaviours we don't want, and not the one that we do!

I was riding with P and Dan this morning, and Magic came to the gate and came straight through to be tacked up, so he went instead of Aero. We went and did our cones in hand first, then ridden, then Dan and P came to join us and we went hacking round the woods. He was golden! Dan was "yeah, been here, done this" Magic was up for it, but in a controlled emotions way! When we came out of the first wood and turned away from the others to go down to the other wood, he even decided to go exploring and set off in the lead without waiting for Dan.

Then I showed P Max's weird behaviour when head lowering - he basically rocks forward onto his front feet so far and tenses his forearm muscles in a way I've never seen a horse do - sometimes he even looks like he's going to crumple onto his knees. All a bit odd. But you watch him grazing etc, and no problem - I'm not sure if its because he feels he's got to hold the tension that he gives when posing? But then I don't want tension there then either!!!

Then this afternoon I decided to get brave, and took Aero out leading Max in a headcollar. Yep. Good call! This is where the information bit comes in :-)

Max - has no clue how to release to pressure of lead rope. Came with us, but bowled past us on a regular basis (who are you, and what have you done with my very lazy/no energy Maxwell?) He did a great job over the uneven ground, and didn't trip over a single tree stump (more than could be said for Aero!) But it was touch and go whether I would have to let him go, and even when he wasn't trying to get ahead of us in his forwardness, he was bumping and bashing sideways with his shoulder into either Aero or my leg. Poor Aero, he thought his world was going to end!

On the plus side, Max did not get aggressive to Aero once. Aero did not pull a face once (didn't dare probably!). I clicked when Max waited for us, and had his head roughly with me and wasn't pulling on the rope.

This was really good actually, as I could treat EITHER of them first, and the other didn't mind. How crazy is that? And Max figured straight away that if he came too forward I would deliver treat so he had to step back again.

When we got back I let Aero back in with the others, and did a bit more headlowering with Max in the yard. I learnt that he DOES make me deliver the treat faster and faster. So I have to actually slow down my delivery as the session progresses, AND be prepared to withdraw treat and re deliver if he is too OTT. This actually really worked, but it needs my brave pants on to do it!

Plus, head lowering came without anywhere near as much weird collapsibility.... and although we got moments of lots of scraping and a few proper nearly teddy tantrums, I was able to hold out on ONLY reinforcing when I had cued the behaviour. I think this is the key with Max at the moment, I need to get to the point where he has to accept that he will ONLY get reinforced for something if I have asked for it, not just because he is clever, and quicker than me, and can fire off behaviours at such a speed!

By the end, the headlowering had slowed down, and was off a number of cues, and we could pose or step back in between. And he was calmer at the end. Result!

Speaking of mugging behaviours (which is basically what Max is doing when he fires them at meover and over) when I went to catch Aero yesterday morning, Magic wanted a go, so he came all the way down the field with me in perfect WWYLM, then waited for me to catch Aero, then came back, still in perfect WWYLM on the other side of me to Aero.... whickering and looking soooo gorgeous. But of course, at no point had I asked for it (or even been going to interact with him!) so I had to ignore him.... and that was HARD! Bless his little cotton socks, he never used to be so keen to work!! :-)

Its times like these

2011-08-29T16:33:00.002+01:00

You learn to live again. It may be Foofighters, but its true!

Today, Aero and I and P and Dan met up with one of our new neighbours for her to show us some hacking routes. We plumped for an hour-ish.... which become two, but the boys were stars! Eyes on stalks to begin with, then very happy to be met by a mare who led us most of the way out.

We had horrid gates, sheep, cows, big tractors, JCBs wielding big round bales way over our heads, that sorta thing. My mantra was "I'm soooooooo glad I'm not on Magic" as each thing accosted us!

Aero was a saint. He did the trappy gates and held them for Dan and P. He let me dangle off him to try one particularly obnoxious gate. He let me get back on him from a gate, in the middle of a grass field whilst Dan struggled to hold it together to stand still (thank goodness for our "capture the saddle" practice this week!)

His only downfall (and those who know him will appreciate this!) was that after his initial enthusiasm to be hacking out with a mare, he got very VERY stressed if he was sandwiched between them - feeling he had to protect Dan at all costs (like Dan was a/ bothered, and b/ needs protection?)

So we had to keep him and the mare apart at all times. BUT this has helped me figure out the Aero a bit further. In his last life he was one of the top boss horses in his herd. Here he is bottom of the heap. His only bad habit has always been pulling faces at other horses when hacking. So I think it is a similar thing to Max- he used to be a bully because it was easier to fight than flight, esp if cornered. Now he doesn't fight, he met his match in Max and just moves away, but when ridden, he obviously feels threatened - as he will even pull faces at Dan (and esp Max) when we used to hack from Mum's. The only one he doesn't pull faces at is Magic. (Ah bless, they wub each other lots!)

I definitely think there is something in this - horses are flight animals- Max is stressed by being in close proximity to the others and food - and this makes him aggressive as he can't take flight or he would lose the food (what a quandry!). Aero is fine, and never pulls faces until he is RIDDEN, when he feels he has to submit to rider, but feels trapped when an unknown (or even known) horse gets too close....? Sounds feasible, huh?

How much "bad" behaviour that we see is actually them trying to deal with the situation they are in? Most of it I would guess!

So we did plenty clicking when near the mare, and plenty clicking if he got too onward bound- and he is soooo cool, one click, one screech to a halt, and then he will walk along whilst the others get ahead, just keeping an ear out for the next click!!!

Dan was also doing an amazing job of emotional control. Gates were a dodgy spot as it involved standing still and waiting, and this was hard.... however, he held it together really well and P got some practice in. He also never got too stressed to stop for a C/T. Even when we both walked off without him. Way to go you two!

Meanwhile, back at the ranch - Max had 2 sessions of head lowering. And remembered it, and got it off all the cues I could think of. Then I have to test cues for other behaviours still work (and after a bit of him fumbling about trying head lowering, he managed to also pose and target - WITHOUT getting stressed and worrying that he was doing it all wrong if I withheld a click when he felt he should have one! Clever brave hoss!)

And we started straight in there on duration. My arm got tired as I reminded him of the cue of my hand up in the air, he would plummet his head down like a stone, and keep it there until either I C/T or I lowered my arm. Hardly any yo-yo-ing and really not getting an escalation of energy. We could keep it all slow, and if he head lowered when I HADN'T cued it, then I asked for a step forward and got it, first and every time! The beginning of emotional control? Am very proud.

Am also scared, this horse learns so quick and is really starting to generalise stuff, I need to be soooo careful to keep things fresh, but to also give him the opportunity to always get a "yes". And I also need to not let him rush me. He really is my teacher at the mo.

Then Magic, we did a bit of pilates, reminded ourselves of the cues for head lower, and then tacked up and went to the cones. Loads of things happening - people shouting in wood, horses coming up bridleway, but he really focussed and we did laps on both reins of him really staying connected with me.

Then I got on, so we did a little bit of capture the saddle as I only have little mounting block by the cones. Then we did right rein and he was oh so gorgeous that we had to have a few trots. Wow, the difference in the feel of him when he really has the balance is amazing. We are really starting to feel how good he can be :-)

In between each trot, he just calmly walked and flexed etc. He never offered trot unasked for, and trotting did not wind him up. He also had total control, so the quarters never swung out to get a stop, until I asked for hip/shoulder/shoulder to change rein.

Then we went left, and he immediately tried to trot (this is the old worried Magic thing of pre-empt everything). So we worked on getting the balance back and keeping the walk. I asked for trot once we had the perfect walk, and it was loads better than previously, but still not quite as balanced as to the right (he would always rush more on the left).

We finished on really balanced walk and went back in.

All in all, a really really fabby day :-)

A Year Ago Today...

2011-08-28T16:07:00.003+01:00

This happened!

Can't believe its a year, and can't believe how much else has happened either!

So today, it was only right that I had a complete emotional hiccup whilst riding Magic! But to start at the beginning....

Fri - Magic and I practiced more around the cones. He is getting such emotional control (can someone teach me how to???) and even though moments were still a bit scary for him, he managed wonderfully. He is also TOTALLY accepting me leading the dance - maybe because we are in a new place, new start etc. Even when things get a bit scary, he will flip his hips and step back (hip-shoulder-shoulder) for me. I think this has really helped his emotional control (Jane remembers to attempt to spin round and step back a few times next time she's emotional.... can't be long now!!!)

And then Aero and I took him for another lead around the wood - this time we did half the ride with him on our left (so on the right rein, flexing right) and half on our right (on left rein, flexing left). We never lost his poll, yey! Interestingly, he would over flex right, but barely flex left, still always with his give in the poll... so that is different to "usual".

But no stress and we came home all happy bunnies.

Saturday I taught all day, but snuck out at 7am to play with the cones, and Magic was just perfect!

Then today, P and I took Dan and Aero round the whole place. We met scary cows, cantering up to the fence next to us "bovvered?" said Aero. We also sank a bit in the clay of the bank of the lake, but hey ho. The grass is beginning to grow in the seeded field, yey! So the rain is working its magic!

Both boys were excellent.

Then later on, Aero and Simon took Magic and I round the woods. Magic was very good, considering there were numpties in the next wood screaming.... I was chuntering and winding myself up, but Magic took a leaf out of Simon's book and ignored me, whilst trying his best to ignore the shouting as well!

Then we got back to the schooling area and parked Simon and Aero in the middle of the cones whilst Magic and I had a short go. OMG he was amazing. It is spectacularly hard to sit over the middle of him on the right rein - he kinda has no right side and I think this is linked to him usually swinging his quarters to the left as part of controlling his speed.... but it got better and better as we got more together and more straight. I need loads of fencing lunge that way, but that helps us stay straighter, I guess the more crooked I feel, the harder it is for him to stay straight and in balance.

Then I asked for a hip flip to change rein, and what I got was a perfect hip-shoulder-shoulder having never done it from his back before!!! So we have been working on it on the ground, but OMG they are SO right when they say it just HAPPENS. Amazing stuff. Feels great too, like you have complete control and the horse is totally working with you to carry you and keep the energy and balance spot on!

Then left rein and he was lovely, and a perfect H-S-S again to the right. We did a bit more then finished on a smile. I did have a total "I'm rubbish" meltdown in the middle, primarily because my brain couldn't take all the things it needed to do. Fortunately, just putting my body in a better place got everything sorted out. Poor Simon thought we were having a bad session (and couldn't see why!), until I got off and said "wow that was amazing". I don't think he will ever understand me and my kooky ways!!

I took Magic home and Simon took Aero out round the woods on their own (well, with Echo!) and everyone came home smiling. Simon even got organised enough to be clickering from on board. Way to go!!

Then onto Max - Simon watched us as I am still struggling with Mr OverAcheiver and his energy is building again. He performs all the behaviours asked for, but in a similar fashion to the duracell bunny on speed. ie. Fast. And Often. And MORE. etc Then he gets frustrated if I try to slow things down.

Simon suggested he did something easy with him, to see what he was like. The others had gone out (they have more grass) and whilst I was with Max, there was no way he was going anywhere. I came out the yard, and Simon went in. Max very politely spoke to him, then wandered off out into the field. Oh. Not what would have happened if it had been me. I would have had a Max glued to my hip!!!

Still, good news that he saves that level of energy for me, but we still need to train him to control his exuberance for working (maybe this is just Max's lesson for me, before we have a baby pony to train as well!!!)

So we are going to try to build in duration for behaviours, so he doesn't fire things at me at a rate of knots.... it could be interesting but I think its where we need to go next. He does understand duration for standing on his mat, so we just need to generalise it to EVERYTHING!

Wish me luck!

Why oh why

2011-08-25T11:49:00.002+01:00

Didn't I set up the video camera this morning? Magic and I just had a fantastic session in hand. Yesterday's attempt was thwarted by muchly scary things (bonfire, new chicken fence, windy trees), and by me not being in a good enough place mentally, to put myself in the right place physically (tai chi walk, pelvis forward).

We had some good parts, but also parts where his feet got stuck, and some where his feet ran away from us... As things fall apart (even to the minor point of being slightly not as good as previously) I beat myself up about how I'm not perfect and that gives me even LESS brainspace than usual to fix it! I am a queen of vicious circles!!

Today, we went out and the scary things were still scary, but we started off round the circle of cones on just the "safe" side, so wwylm and then hip shoulder shoulder to change rein. After a few half laps like this, we were able to get all the way round the circle with him staying with me emotionally as well as physically! Yey! And the more often we can get that, the more belief I have, the more belief I have, the more brainspace I have to remember the bits of MY body language that aren't automatic but are necessary. I can't believe I am such a beginner in ground work and body language on the ground, its laughable how little awareness I have.

I have now given myself a checklist of balls - pelvis - breath. It sounds dodgy huh? But balls is pushing off from the balls of my feet, not pulling myself along like I have ALWAYS walked. Its a big deal for me even to remember it. But imagine this - horses are our mirrors as I am always teaching folks when riding, yes? So if I pull myself along "on the forehand" how can I expect my horse to do anything different? Yes, I have to do my 10,000 reps on that first!!!

Then Max and I had a session - get this - in the barn. With Aero and Dan in there too, but far enough away. We started to do a more complex loop. We did targetting, and then pose, and swapped back and forward a bit, and then we started to build a loop - so we started with target - touch - C/T - pose cue - pose - C/T - target - etc

Then we ended up with a clean loop of pose - target - pose - C/T. He got pose being reinforced by being able to touch the target really fast, but it took longer to go from target back to pose - but because pose is so highly reinforced and is his default behaviour (in the absence of a target!) that once he got it he was cool!

Plus, we had soft kind eyes. In the beginning of the session, I did some step forward to target, step back for treat, and this got us nearer and nearer to Aero (who had already come nearer and Max was ignoring really well). Suddenly Max decided that was quite enough (interestingly, at that point, Aero hadn't moved at all for some time - and went off to shoo him away. Having been re-reading Alex's step by step book, I decided to experiment with giving him a time out when he does this. I'm not sure it will work, but it gives me permission to be safe and get out of the way if it all turns nasty! He just snaked his neck at Aero, so I went and re-stocked with treats and once Max was standing back where I'd left him, I went back and continued to play with the loops.

Having so much more room has really helped Max not to feel hemmed in by the others, and as he is getting more confident he is getting less and less aggressive to them - but I struggle with how NOT to reinforce him when he goes off after one of them during a session.... this might not work but it is all learning for me. And that is the first time he has done that since we moved, and probably because the combination of me stepping him back and Aero having crept forward made him just too close for comfort.

Again, trying to work within their stretch zone, without them lapsing into their comfort zone or being stretched into their panic zone is a big deal. And I need all the information I can get as to where these zones begin and end!

Rights and wrongs

2011-08-24T11:44:00.003+01:00

AKA, or, more importantly - making mistakes, learning from them and accepting that they are part of the process of learning as they teach you to read the increasing subtle cues your horse gives you!

So yesterday.

Aero and I and Echo went for a ride round the woods. I honestly can't explain how lovely this is! Echo was the perfect hacking partner, and bimbled through the woods ahead of us. Aero is getting calmer and calmer about being in a new place and hacking on his own. He's never put a foot wrong, but now we don't come home any faster than we went out! And he loooooves C/T when being ridden. He makes me giggle each time I click with his screech to a halt and happy ears!!

Then Magic and I went out into the schooling paddock. He was sooo much better, forward, straighter and obviously more up to go exploring, so we wandered into the woods. Down the first ride, he took me down in a nosy fashion. Along the back fence he carried on under his own steam, then as we got to the bottom corner he started to get a bit tense and walk a bit fast. This was where all 3 of them have got more tense. I had thought it is because it is blatantly the 2nd right turn so therefore we are going towards home... but thinking now I'm not sure its not because this is where the gas pipe line runs? Who knows.

Anyway, we get about a 1/3rd of the way along the ride, and at this point I lose his attention and he isn't giving me his poll. I should have taken this as the "reached the point of no return tension" but I didn't :-(

Lesson learned. Next thing I know, he is HAVING to get my attention that he is too tense, by going bolt upright. This is not a good thing when I am on the buckle as it meant he left me out the back door completely. That is twice he's managed that now, and there's me that used to be able to hang around the neck of any rearer!

He came down, and we regrouped. He then replayed the exact scenario that we have had 3 times now (1st was at last RC lesson 2 yrs ago? - where it was MAJOR and I had to ride him into the ground as pre much clicker, 2nd was at Mary's in March where clicker training got him back, but I was hanging on by a thread, and now today.)

It basically goes 1. Rear vertical with no pre warning (unless you count not giving at poll, which I now do!) off a long relaxed rein and leave Jane hanging out the back door. 2. Land and bronc round like a crazy. 3. Jane deals with situation in best way known to her at the time!

So, we landed, he went to start the broncs, so I flipped his hips. It pulled him up to a stop and I got off. And walked him home on his right side (the worse one actually) getting jaw releases and flexions and three-flip-three all the way home. He was tense, but stayed with me totally, so in fact, a hugely negative situation, caused by me not reading him well enough, actually became some really beneficial work.

As soon as I was off, he was with me. Unlike at Mary's when I settled him from on board, but then when I got off he lost the plot totally. So am happy that he is able to stay with me on the ground now too. Also very pleased that his reaction this time was about 30% what it was on the last two occasions, and that the O.T.T. tension was gone in seconds once I was off. Rather than it getting worse (at RC lesson) and at the very least remaining the same, or threatening to come back (at Mary's).

Then today, I hacked Aero and lead Magic on a headcollar round the same route. He was sooooo cool! I've not lead him off another horse since doing WWYLM and he went nearly the whole way round in lovely flexion. We did lose a bit of poll down the last ride (same place) but interestingly, he was much more relaxed, the only thing obvious was that he was offering lateral flexions, but NOT giving at the poll unless I ran hand down rein. So they both had to learn how to get C/T when there are two of you. And it was great learning for me to really SEE the differences in his posture.

I think tightness in his poll area is now such a HUGE thing for him. As soon as I spot it in future, I will ask for a release, and if the release isn't coming, then I know I need to get him to a safer spot! Brilliant learning for me!

Max has had more targetting, leading from targetting and some stepping forward/back/pose. He was spot on with all this, but I need to move on, so I did try with bridle, which he put on willingly, but then immediately got high energy. I need to go back and fix the bridle training hole. And meanwhile I need to find where we are going to go next, as we have clean loops so we need to move on!

Am off back out in a bit to take Magic back out to the schooling area and do more WWYLM/three-flip-three. If I can have his poll then I will get on and see if I can have it on board too :-)

Day two

2011-08-22T21:45:00.002+01:00

Magic and I did a pilates session, then he proved he can do the mounting block lesson, even though it was a milk crate next to the pig sheds containing scary metal lumps. Then he walked down the track next to the chickens, and straight over the hose. Then we did balanced walk around in our schooling area (am loving that I have a flat bit of field I can call a schooling area!). Even walking right next to the bonfire :-)

He did think that working on the right rein meant he could turn for home, so we established that we still can give at the poll before changing how our feet move, even if that means the direction they are moving in! And after about 3 turns, he realised that to get a click, it wasn't enough to be perfectly flexed and balanced, but that he had to do it going away from the others! So he started turning the circle AWAY from the yard earlier and earlier once he twigged that just being in the position wasn't enough :-) clever pony is REALLY starting to generalise stuff now!

Then Aero and I went for a hack through the woods. We started with the mounting block game though, as he found it scary to be parked next to the pig sheds. He would just about get level, then swing his quarters away. After a few minutes of "capture the saddle" he had worked out to bring me the saddle. Very cool!

Our hack was cool too, quite literally, lovely in the woods on a hot day. Aero was very chilled, and very chuffed to be out with clicker... he's so funny - its still such a novelty to have a rider with a clicker, that he literally goes "ooooooooh cooooooool" as he screeches to a halt :-)

Then when we got back, I took Dan out for a quick lap. He was much better than yesterday, but still had to whinny when we turned for home, cue a cacophony of replies from the others. Sigh. He was pretty cool though and managed to stop for C/T whenever he got one.

Then it was Max's turn. And he stood in the barn, with me the other side of the fence, playing targetting. This is not very interesting, exciting or special is it? Except that Magic was stood RIGHT next to him! And Max did not even waggle an ear, or glare at him! Major breakthrough.

Poor Magic had to just look hopeful! But it was a big deal, honest.

Then this evening, I trimmed Magic's fronts. Can you believe, that I moved them 48 hours ago, and today I had Magic in our little tie-up bit of barn, trimming his front feet (his most hated thing in the world?) Bonkers. I had hoped the move would cement the new regime, and it definitely seems to have done. He did take his foot off the stand more often, but let me do them and got better and better. And still did his step up to the stand like its the mat thing :-)

The interesting thing is that 48 hours ago, he didn't need a trim, and his feet were flat with false sole from living on hard flat surfaces (clay soil and concrete). Two days on planings and crushed brick and they are lovely shiny smooth soles but with long walls!! I think we are going to have much better feet this winter, even before they get their permanent pea gravel area.

Another great thing, is that Magic, Aero and Dan are absolutely rock crushing over the lumpy crushed bricks (up to half a brick in size.) they are choosing to walk all over it, and Magic and Dan even played the rearing/biting game on it this afternoon (I had to not look!)

Max doesn't think much of it, unsurprisingly, but am hoping that the grass being so rubbish will help him grow even better feet. They are already showing some concavity, and he is really comfy on the planings, just choosing not to tromp all over the bricks with the others (sensible fella).

We're in!

2011-08-21T21:46:00.002+01:00

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150271984256434.338286.577541433

:-)

Day one in the big brother house. Erm, no, that's not right! Day one of ponies living at home :-)

Whoop!

Dan and I and Simon and Aero went for a quick jaunt around the woods. Tres scary, well actually, not tres scary, until Dan whinnied for the others, and we had a full on Max/Dan conversation, ie, one squealing like a pig (Dan) and one roaring like a dinosaur (Max). Magic and Aero joined it, but their voices are too normal and quiet to be able to be heard over the bellowing.

Still, we had a nice ride, and proved that we could all fit down the tracks :-)

Then I took Magic out of the yard to prove nothing had changed. He has been spectacularly brave, living next to a giant, horse eating digger and dumper truck! We did some pilates that just made him so jolly! :-) Then we went for a little walk, and he very bravely took me past the chickens, down the narrow track between their barn and the falling down chicken sheds, over the hose pipe (snaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaake) and past the bonfire to go for a walk through the woods.

He was excellent and was in wwylm for most of the time, just getting a little bit onward as we came home - if I am on his right when this happens, then I am at risk of being shouldered as he jack-knifes out through his right shoulder. A run down the rein and he softens the jaw and steps away, so C/T.

As Amanda says, Magic is learning that he can give at the poll BEFORE he changes the speed of his feet. And it is having a HUGE impact on his ability to stay calm - even when I am not around!!

Speaking of which, when I moved them on Saturday, I wheeled a wheelbarrow up the yard at Mum's past Magic who was eating hay in the middle of the yard, and on my wheelbarrow? A round sheep feeder - normally quite terrifying. He looked up, snorted, put his head down and carried on eating. I was a bit blown away TBH. :-) I am so pleased that he is actually able to keep himself calm now, even without me?

And Max, well, he has definitely turned over a new leaf. He has been really good with all the others, even when I am around. We have had some sessions, in the yard, with the others around us and he has focussed on me and not felt the need to leave to move the others away. I haven't had a session here yet, but that is on the cards for tomorrow!

Mad about the boy...

2011-08-13T15:46:00.005+01:00

So today, it seems to have been all about Magic!

Purely because Simon came to the yard with me to help me load all the heavy yard stuff. So I let them out into the big field, and the ONLY one who came back in (away from more grass) and showed an interest, was, you guessed it - Magic. The one who until recently would run to the hills at the first sign of anything unusual happening (such as two people on the yard!)

So as we actually had a video person (as opposed to a fence post!) he got a short pilates session, then a little bit of bridling, and then some in hand work, with bridle first, and then his reward - at liberty, because he soooo much prefers to be free!

The pilates video is a bit pants as although I could see him engage his abs, the definition doesn't show up against his blackness, so it will be like watching paint dry! There is a lot more to come here, but even though we are not very good yet, it has improved his pose and we get a lot less rock forward-rock back than we did (yes, on the video that IS less than we were getting!)

Then onto bridling. At the moment we are working on him holding the bit by almost lowering his head around it, rather than putting it in his mouth and "picking it up" as it were, as that means he either drops it, or I have to raise the bridle up, and this makes him raise his head more.... So definite work in progress. I have to say, find me a training hole and I will set about fixing it, but I am rubbish at splitting things up into small enough chunks in the first place!!

Then onto in hand. We were doing wwylm, but with an added bit of three-flip-three just to try to get his balance better on the right rein. Finally, we seem to be getting the same thing on the ground and in ridden - right shoulder would bulge out, quarters would swing left, so getting shoulders out to the left on the right rein and the quarters staying "straight" or stepping under, is very hard for a Magic.

I think there is a pretty big change in his outlook once the bridle comes off and he gets his "fun time" of liberty. In fact, he went even better at liberty, the only issue I have is that he will over bend to the inside in his neck, so there we have another training hole I need to fix one day!

Please excuse the rather obvious pink flappy thing - I'm not sure quite why today was the day to get it out and shake it all about, but it was! :-)

Guess what we did?

2011-08-12T12:32:00.002+01:00

Max and I went for a walk down the lane :-) and he was soooo good, absolutely relaxed and chilled! We had one moment where a lorry arrived at a house down the lane and started unloading rubble or something, so he gazed into the middle distance. His heart rate was right up, and the other boys galloped off up the field (jeez, thanks fellas) but he came back to me and walked on with me totally calm. No leaping into my lap, scooby doo stylee. Marvellous!

And I came to another huge realisation today (I am soooo slow on the uptake sometimes!). I already knew Max is loads better with the others when I am not there. Although it has all improved, I am definitely the same as food in his mind. Therefore, he needs to protect "his" food from the others. Unfortunately, sometimes, his "food" isn't where he thinks it is, so can get squished in the middle when he sees the others off. Not a good place to be for a human really.

And today, when I arrived, Max, Aero and Dan were all peacefully standing in the barn. I went to get Max in for breakfast (not thinking - see the theme developing here?!) and they were all FINE. I stood with him and was giving him scritchies (another thing unheard of as I wasn't allowed that close and it would have been aversive to him a few weeks ago!) They were all still standing there fine.

Then Aero did his best - "right, I'm going to get out of here because ITS NOT SAFE" - but rather than go out the back door, easily accessible and miles away from Max, its like he's a magnet drawn to trouble and he has to charge through the 3ft gap between Max and the wall of the barn. Guess who had been standing there up to a nano second before? Sometimes I think Aero's main ambition in life is to get ME flattened.

So I sidestep out the way, Aero gets PAST Max before Max launches, which is another huge improvement, and he actually only bit his bum in passing and stayed where he was stood. But of course, when you factor in that Max is actually MORE scared than the others, he was then worried about what Dan was doing, so I had to remove Dan before he would settle.

I don't think Max WANTS to protect me, I think he feels he has no option. Its like until one of the others moves into his (very large) personal space, he is fine with food (or me!) being there and doesn't feel he needs to protect us. As soon as one of the others MAKES A MOVE - THEN he will go on the attack.

So somehow, I need to be able to stage manage every situation, remembering that actually, Max is the MOST scared of all of them. My challenge at the moment is that Max wants to be with me, so if I go in and try to put the others in stables etc, I will get a Max first and the whole thing starts again....

Maybe I need to train the others to come to an individual cue, then hopefully over time I will get the one that I want. I already don't get a Max when I want a Magic, but that's generally because Magic is too wise to put himself in a compromising position, so won't be in the barn with a Max if he can't see an exit.

Lots to think on. Tomorrow I need to remember that first and foremost, Max is the most scared. If I can remember that and not let his big bad bully routine lull me again, then I think we can fix this fairly quickly - my biggest challenge is changing my mindset!

Getting connected.

2011-08-07T13:30:00.002+01:00

Wow. This is a big deal. The old adage of "my behaviour affects your behaviour affects my behaviour, ad finitum".

I trimmed Max's front feet, whilst he desperately tried to look away from me (hard, when the thing you are trying not to look at is directly in front of you under your nose!) C/T for any time he kept foot on stand and made a looking anywhere but me and respecting my personal space (despite the fact that I was WELL inside his!)

He seems to have suddenly accepted me well and truly into his space, but woe betide any of the other boys coming into it WITH us!!!

Then I let him have a rest whilst Magic and I went for a walk. First off, he came and put his bridle on, the best yet. Proof that spending a couple of short sessions just doing bridle paid off.

Then we went out down the drive for the first time in AGES. We were high energy, but I maintained my tai chi walk and stayed grounded and we didn't have any planting, or any goggling in the distance. I do need to keep at least 70% of my focus on staying in my feet, which doesn't leave much to play with for reinforcing them, but I managed.

I found that interestingly, there ARE times when he just wants to step across and out through his right shoulder when I am NOT on him - and it must be related to tension. So we did the beginnings of three-flip-three and got good, better, best releases and then a step over. This REALLY helped not only his tension and his blocking, but it helped me to stay in my body and not start reacting to his.

Everything is everything else, and I am beginning to see what a genius Alexandra Kurland actually is, to put together this system where, if you follow it, even in such a higgledy piggeldy way as me, you will end up with the tools to deal with ANY issue! It seems like a lot of bits and pieces, and it is nice that it works even if you jump around a bit, as long as you can quit lumping sooner or later and get back to splitting and find the training holes of missed behaviours!

So, by the time we were walking back, he was still high energy, but he was absolutely matching my footfalls stride for stride, with no hand on rein. He was also trying his best to control his emotions, and the biggie was, I was actually able to keep my OWN emotional control and not buy into his state. This meant he didn't get any feedback for it, and we could just keep asking and getting the desired behaviours. He never once zoned out on me, despite it all being a bit scary for him.

I am sooooo pleased with both of us. Once I can truly stay in my zen like noticing place, we will really start to get even more connected, and in a week I would say it is 50% better than it was.

Also, its positive reinforcement for me - when I can keep my state and grounding, he goes so much better and he keeps his focus so well that I can ask him stuff and he will stay with me, not offer randomness!

I'm still so much only seeing the tip of iceberg mind you, but its very much more fun already!

Then onto Max. We did leading, and he was really really good. We went out into the field further than we have done this week. I got a bit antsty inside me, worrying that he was going to turn into that hot air balloon agan, and struggled with my grounding, but oh, he was sooooo good. He just kept trucking when I wanted him too, if I felt he was too near me, I just changed my focus to his shoulder and he would step out away. If I turned to his tail he would reverse. This great big lump of a horse who has no idea where his feet are and how big he is, is suddenly becoming a dancer!!! He was soooo cool. And he really helped me out, and I could have hugged him if I thought he wouldn't have hated it!! So he got a pile of treats on the floor to finish instead!

The yard looks weird all cleared out.... bit like the Marie Celeste! Will be even weirder once the horses aren't there either. Still hoping for this week.... holding my breath!

On the move!

2011-08-06T19:36:00.002+01:00

Well, all our stuff is! Took a lorry load of "yard" home this afternoon, and unloaded it unceremoniously into garage and old kitchen. This will need sorting in a BIG way at some point!

Magic and I had a little abs pilates session, then a short burst of put your bridle on. He was very good, very focussed. And the most amazing thing was that he was not terrified ONCE as I wheeled the contents of our yard up to the horsebox all morning! Result.

Max and I did a bit of headcollar and a bit of leading, even going out into the field for a lap. He is loads better, I have to focus very hard on me, but then I am allowed in his space and he will follow me along in a lovely WWYLM way. If I get high energy, or lose my grounding, or my focus on him, then we get higher energy and all sorts of teddies start flying all over the place.

Very interesting (which is an improvement on very scary!!!) and such a steep learning curve for me. Max really was put here to teach me this, and there was I thinking Magic had done such a good job - no, if I was high energy with Magic he just wouldn't be near me (think next county!) but I never truly learned what I needed to do to keep him calm. Now I do! So Magic and I both need to thank Max for that!

Soooo yard is nearly sorted, hopefully big digger will level out the outside bit so we can bang some stone down and then we just need a bit of electric tape and we are in. Whoop! Really not long now til I can see ponies out of the kitchen window!

Abs crunches and putting your own headcollar on...

2011-08-03T11:32:00.004+01:00

First up, abs crunches. I need to do some of these myself at the moment, but this was Magic's go!

I got out his mat, and we had a short session of pose with engaging his abs. I found it harder to "see" than on Sunday, not helped that the most enormous skip lorry arrived and reversed up the drive under his nose mid session! He was very good. Watched it, but came back to pose and engage abs.

I need to remember that if I zone out on him (even for skip lorry) he could see this as negative - and if nothing else its a bit rude of me! Would I zone out if a person was trying to interact with me (don't answer that, I do it with people too if I am not noticing!) It also gives him the reason to zone out on me! I think I am now more distracted by outside influences than my horses are. I suspect I am better to end the session, go away and think about it and then come back, than zone out and then try to carry on the session.

Maybe I should hand over the clicker and they can train me to be more focussed for a bit? It seems to have worked on them!

Then onto putting your own headcollar on :-)

Amanda suggested this for Max after seeing the video from yesterday. Any long time readers will probably remember that I had "trained" putting his own headcollar on before, but I left it once I started work on the pose, mainly due to his over-enthusiasm and lunging his nose into the headcollar and getting frustrated if I didn't have it open perfectly in time (my bad!!!)

So this morning, the others were in eating hay, and he was in the yard eating hay. I got my jacket and his headcollar and he came over. The interesting thing is HOW he came over. He had his back to me and kept looking round at me. I stood and waited. He was still munching hay.

He then turned, and came 2 strides, and posed. I was standing in pose cue, so C/T for that. He then took a few more strides and stopped to pose WELL OUT OF MY PERSONAL SPACE! Brilliant, another breakthrough.

Plus, another lightbulb for me - as Amanda said, his personal space is SO big, that me going into his probably is more negative than me offering him to come to me.... (as long as he's not going to come to me and land on top in his enthusiasm!) So will try to stage manage the situation so he can come to me. Difficult with them free range as he and Magic will race for it. So they need to know when its their turn, and when its the others.... now if I can put that on cue then that'll help his emotional control lots, as all he wants to do at the moment is interact with me!!

So back to this morning. He is now just out of my personal space. So I wait for pose and then hold headcollar up. He doesn't touch it straight away, but he did come towards it. C/T. Then we slowly progressed up until we had a new loop....

Pose -> Headcollar out (think targetting) -> nose in -> click (headcollar away) - > treat - > pose

After 3 goes, he was holding his head in the headcollar so I could just swing the headpiece over. He got a little bit high energy as the rules had changed (no longer just pose, but pose then do something) but as long as I keep my mantra of he's never wrong and I need to find something to C/T him for and I keep MY energy down and grounded into my feet and I don't get into HIS space whilst he's figuring things out.

Actually, I think the me not getting too in his space/face whilst he thinks is a HUGE thing. I don't think he CAN think - its like I create white noise if I am too close. Well, now that really IS a thing I need to remember!

Then we moved onto forward/back/pose. Which is going really well! We could have as many/few forward backward steps as I wanted. He never "kept walking" when I wanted him to stop, but we did have a few moments where I was cueing pose, and he walked forward... in this instance, I have to keep my posture so he has somewhere forward to flow.... but today when he did this, I decided to flow along with his shoulder, but slowly turn 180 so I am cueing him to step back.

This had a really nice flow and meant that he would yield a hip as he recognised that I didn't want more forward, step his quarters to the side, and then straighten up and step back - C/T!

So I am slowly figuring out how I can make it that he is never wrong, whilst trying to build up additional behaviours and increasing duration. Fingers crossed it continues to work! We even made it through the gate into the paddock (about 3 ft!) and back in again without any increase of energy.

Fab, clever boys :-)

Max, today....

2011-08-02T17:14:00.004+01:00

So this morning Max and I had another mini session. He started off much higher energy, and didn't want his head collar on initially (you will see he does not hold his pose when I bring it towards him). So I load the pose behaviour a bit and then when I try again, he holds nice and still for me to put his head collar on.

Then we move onto step forward, step back, pose, in no particular order. What is interesting is that sometimes I think my body language is clear (either face him slouch = pose, face his tail = step back, take forward shoulder back by releasing whole front arm = step forward) and he seems to get step forward of some description each time, and pose is pretty much default so that's ok, but the step back he is not so sure of, sometimes he thinks an exaggerated pose is what I want, then I have to reposition MY body and have more step back intention. Its quite clear the difference in quality of step back when I am just facing him, compared with when I am facing him and have a clear intention of clear two feet step back.

I like that the ending you can't see us still working on forward/back/pose in the stable because its too dark but can just hear my clicks.

Good energy level I think?!

I think we can start to expand our horizons slightly now, and take it down and around the yard a bit.

First session post lesson

2011-08-01T18:24:00.003+01:00

And I have a reformed character on my hands. Max. I also have a reformed view of him too! Amanda told me that he would only be brave enough to offer ME his big old high energy stuff, and that that was a GOOD thing, that he trusted me enough not to crush him back down (would be hard anyway with that much horse!)

So today I went to do them with a new view of him.

And he was golden!

I decided that I would just get him into his stable before breakfast (usually a bad time to train him as he is hungry so therefore even more enthusiastic!). But it would then only be 5 mins max.

So I went and got head collar, and gave my pose cue (slouch). He posed, C/T. He posed again, headcollar on C/T. Then I asked him to step forward with my new "shushy" move. And he stepped forward. I turned and asked for step back (by facing the other way, my shoulder level with his but not in front... and he stepped back. And then we danced forward and back and posing this way all the way round the yard and into his stable where he got big praise and some food on the floor.

Very very cool how fixing my body just fixed all the blocks in his!

What a weekend!

2011-07-31T18:56:00.002+01:00

Saturday was a clicker training clinic with Amanda from Smaart Horses. Had a fab day, and it was really good for me to watch novice handlers/novice horses. I have lumped training for both my own horses and for my clients, and it was good to be able to give myself permission to start from the beginning, one behaviour at a time! Sometimes that's a hard one to sell to other folks, but it was really good to see how fast ALL the horses learned the behaviour when this was a criteria.

We did some body awareness stuff, to improve tai chi walk and ropehandling skills.

The grounding to learn to "feel your feet" was a big deal for me. For a long time I have known that my body awareness on horse is far FAR better than by body awareness when on my own two feet. Mainly because I have trained my body to be aware of stuff when I am riding.

So we experimented with human horses (!) about the rope handling etc, and what I found (staggeringly to me) was that even if my human horse shut their eyes, if I walked along holding rope, guiding them, in my "usual" high-energy, everything "up" balance, then it was all a bit hurried, a bit jerky. when I consciously got my awareness down to my feet and grounded myself, THEIR pace changed to match mine, despite their eyes being closed and us being on an arena surface. Bonkers. Their feedback was that it wasn't a conscious change from them, just that something DID change them. So, another huge lesson for me!

Then today, we had lessons at home.

Magic and I went first. He started off offering pose, so we got his mat out and did some equine pilates. We worked on getting him to engage his core muscles, so rather than the pose becoming a scrunch and rock back, it became a neck forward, head dropped, tummy up, loins curl, bum under. And once he realised he was getting a click only for the abs crunches, he was able to offer them on my pose cue. Coooool.

Then we went out to the field to do some WWYLM. He is so light, and it is all about my energy, and can I be grounded enough. I need to imagine pelvis forward, but if I tighten my shoulders at the same time, then I will block him and lose my forward. Pelvis back and he runs on the forehand ahead of me. Again, just like in riding, they are our mirrors. I can believe it more in riding, on the ground, when I am not even holding a rein, it is BONKERS. But still, body language is their main form of communication, and during our experiment, it even worked with humans, so I can sort of believe it!!!

Next up was Simon and Aero, who had a fun session of teaching Aero left and right (as Simon struggles with L and R, maybe eventually he can get Aero to show him!!!)

Then came P and Dan. This was a cooool session. Dan started off a bit forward, and desperate to touch each cone in the circle, but ended in the most amazing balance and with both of them totally chilled out! Excellent stuff.

Then it was me and Max. Amanda wanted to see him straight out in the field, but I baulked, so we stayed in the yard. He demonstrated his demolition derby with the cones, so she took all props away and worked with us on our leading. I need to make sure I don't shut every door, so when I ask him forwards, I need to keep opening my arm, release the rein and KEEP opening it to open my shoulder and let him step forward. I do need to be able to block his shoulder from stepping into me, but I need to do it by channelling, and I'd got into a place where I was just blocking ALL his energy, hence his energy bubbling up.

Very interesting, and I'm glad she got to see us at our worst, so I know where I've got to go from here.

We discussed how its actually a positive thing that he is firing all this high energy stuff at me - I need to channel it and teach him how to control his emotions and then he will be fab. She did compliment me on having NOT just shut him back down after he got a bit up and scary. So then I felt a bit better about it. I just need to be able to keep directing the energy, and boy he is teaching me so much.

Interestingly, she agreed that head lower is so NOT the right calm down cue for him at the moment, and that she can see why I went to pose as that is working pretty well as an "in the absence of anything else" behaviour.

So, lots and lots of things to add to our arsenal. Lots of homework and it gave me confidence to keep doing what I am doing.

And I do love my boys, even though they are chalk and cheese (who'd ever have thought that it would be MAGIC who had emotional control?????!!)

So good things come in threes too!

2011-07-27T17:43:00.003+01:00

1. We will soon have a new member of the herd....

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150250768566434.332086.577541433&l=b65867e652&type=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d53VYLBQNKg

He will be arriving sometime in September. He is by Sambertino out of a TB mare.

Video of dad here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d53VYLBQNKg

He will be my first "purpose" bought horse since Ben, who we bought nearly 20 years ago! The purpose has changed somewhat mind you... now I will know if I poison the cues, oh dear!

2. As of the middle of August, I am now longer "employed" but purely self employed again :-)

3. I have just found out I have been accepted as an accredited Ride With Your Mind coach!

Lots to be smiling about round here!

Magic and me

2011-07-21T11:31:00.004+01:00

Today I put Max's mat (it makes cracking noises when you stand on it so not introduced it to Magic yet!) and a tiny circle of cones in the field, to take Max out and continue our work on clean loops.

Then, when I walked into the yard to get him, who was coming to meet me but Magic?!

So I decided to work him first. Got pose, put reins over head, clean loops.

Got pose, put bridle up in front of him.... oh dear. Now either the pose is tooo reinforced as he kept offering more pose when I did it, OR the bridle is still poisoned OR I never got clean enough loops with bridling in the first place. All are very likely!

So a few clicks for posing, then touching bit, then holding bit, and we have bridle on. This is a training hole and I need to come back to get clean loops through all stages. REMINDER!!!

Then I use my new found step forward cue to ask him to come to the mounting block. The REALLY cute thing was that Magic was on my right, so I was standing to his left when I asked. This was fine, but there is a "sticky" spot in the yard, between the drain and the tack area, where he doesn't like to stand/stop/walk. I think it is related to the drain and there being a puddle there usually. So I asked and he stepped forward each time, but once he realised where I wanted him to go, he started to pose and step back. Oh dear I thought, he doesn't want me to get on him today.....

But no - he backed up in pose, then stepped left, and walked past the "scary" drain area on MY left, so I was to his right. This is the "safer" side to walk of the drain according to Magic! We then walked straight up to mounting block.

I can't tell you how much it made me grin. I could almost see him saying "hang on now, can't do that,too scary, but can do THIS - will this do?" Bless him. Think he was very proud of his problem solving!

I hop on, and he walks down the yard really nicely. We get pose first, then I ask very lightly with leg, and he steps forward, C/T. I don't ask again until he is in pose, and if the loop isn't clean, I try to go back to just pose, C/T.

We go out to the field and of course he makes a bee line for the pile of cones and mat I left out for Max. Go to the fence to turn on the camera, then make our way back to start.

I was intending to work on pose/step forward from light leg in same balance. But of course, initially things didn't quite work out that way!

To start with, right rein, he wanted to have his head to the cones/mat. He wasn't "getting" my cue to step left with his shoulders, so we worked on that. You can see that at about 1m50s I pick up rein to ask him to step left, and he very nicely poses, then steps back.

By just maintaining the same weight and length of the rein (ie barely contact but shorter rein) and waiting, he then tried to step left. C/T. After that you can see he gets it a bit quicker and quicker over 3 clicks, then he does it perfectly! Its funny how after a while things do start to happen really quickly! No frustration, just a level of trying things out to get the thing that will be reinforced! :-)

Things I noticed clearly when on him (more so than when on the ground with him, my feel seems to be more accurate than my eyes!). On right rein, he would prefer to weight right shoulder and step right (actually on both reins). But he also swings his quarters away when halting on right rein. On left rein, he will overkill on stepping out through right shoulder and curl around inside too far, but with hind quarters in same place.

This is all easy to see on the video, but I really really struggle to see it when close up to him. Its easier when free shaping and you are just standing back and watching, but actually being "in" there is hard!

It also FEELS clearer when riding when he has the pose balance as opposed to his on the forehand usual balance.

Obviously, Magic took a while to realise that the cones and stuff were just for going around, not playing with, so plenty of attempts by him to stand on the cones :-)

Gotta love his new found confidence and wanting to "try things out". I love it!

Come for a walk with Echo and me!

2011-07-20T16:10:00.003+01:00

But you need to be on Facebook!! Leave a comment if you aren't and you want to see :-)

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150247594961434.331030.577541433&l=bc062ede72

But basically, its a pictoral way of saying we are nearly ready for a pony invasion, whoop!!

Choices, or lack of...

2011-07-15T16:30:00.003+01:00

A bit of devil's advocate here.

We have horses because we love them, they complete us, they are our hobby, our therapy, sometimes our career.

But we make all their choices for them! So they are completely out of control in their lives, and then, on top of us making all their choices for them, we expect SUBMISSION too!

Tis a bit laughable really. Have you ever tried to dictate to your dog/cat/insert pet of choice what they should do and when? Its hard! They have minds of their own, lives of their own, and whilst they have to fit into ours (live in my house, live by my rules kinda thing) they can still make choices within the limitations that creates.

Which are the most unhappy dogs who have most behavioural issues? The ones who live in a house or a kennel and never get out and about on walks or have free access to the outdoors. So why do we think horses would be any different? Especially as dogs are pack predators, who like a nice warm den of an evening, so being inside is not such a hardship to them!

What would horses do through choice? They would live out with plenty of shelter (mine would insist they had a barn to keep the flies off!), they would move around a lot (20 odd miles a day).

Would they choose to spend any length of time in solitary confinement in a box not much bigger than themselves? Would they choose to wear rugs, let alone 24/7 stables/rugs. Would they choose to be ridden?

OK, we cannot keep them "naturally" but we can keep them in the best practical way that takes into account the horse's nature. We may not be able to give them enough room for 20miles a day, but we shouldn't need to shut them in solitary cells.

I know mine spend a large part of their day grazing, but in this hot weather, they come into the barn to sleep/eat haylage. If one of them fancies some alone time, they will go and kip in one of the stables, but only for 1/2hr or so. If anything scares them, they will flee to the top of the hill (this has been perfected!) if they are too hot, they will find shade, usually in the barn. They will seek out the breezy places. In winter, they will stick their bums into the hedges rather than coming into the barn. They will find the sheltered places. They are generally within sight of each other (or at least know where the others are, so if danger strikes they can be back in the herd during its flight in the blink of an eye)

At this time of year, if it rains, they are all out absolutely luxuriating in it. They will stand in it until they get too cold, then they will roll and run around and play to warm back up. They haven't melted yet.

I see the point of rugs for convenience of owners, and for less than ideal circumstances, and for if the horse does not grow enough coat or is lacking in condition, or elderly. But would a horse choose to wear one? Probably not. In those instances, we are doing something the horse wouldn't choose, but in his best interests (bit like us going to dentist!)

But how many of the choices we take away from our horses and make for them are the WRONG ones? Or impact negatively on our relationships with our horses?

In the olden days, the only choice I used to let me horse make, was which way to turn at the end of the drive when going for a hack! And I used to get told off for letting him make even that choice!! We are back in the land of "never let him win". Why? What might happen if I did? Maybe he might feel better about his life and actually be more motivated to try for me?

There will always be choices we HAVE to make for their own good but that still doesn't sit very comfortably for me. And I want to know I have good reason for making that choice. And I also want to be able to NOTICE that it is not a choice the horse would make for himself in the first place!

And I wish for once and for all we could lose the "get him to submit and never let him win" mentality, but somehow, I think that's a long way off for horses yet. Its getting there for dogs, but even then, the most popular dog trainer on the planet is currently a relic from the dominance age but with a "whispering" (haha) twist.

Default settings

2011-07-15T15:55:00.004+01:00

So I have figured why the pose is working so well. It is partly because he can cue me for a treat, partly because I will wait until he is doing it (and has a clean loop!) before moving onto the next thing, partly because it is a "new" thing, purely clicker trained so pure +R and through only free shaping (so no poisoned parts at all), and partly (and this is my revelation for today!) because I ALWAYS have something I can click him for, so he can stay on a high rate of reinforcement and it is all smooth progress. If he gets stuck, or I chunk up and ask too much, it is easy and quick to just click for the pose and not worry about anything else and build up from there. So it is his default setting, but more importantly in a way, it is also MINE. So as long as I see a pose, he can have a click, no matter what else we were doing.

So today's lesson for Max was 1. Pose, 2. Pose with other horses around you. 3. Pose on mat whilst others are around you. 4. Pose then walk off on cue ( - so, get pose, run hand down lead, get step forward, C/T, get pose etc). 5. Get back to mat, pose again. Repeat both sides.

I tried to get clean loops, but the BIG deal was that for the first time he was working with the others around him (since I realised how anxious the other horses make him I have worked him away from the others where they can't get to him).

He was fantastic. It was a HUGE ask, but he came up trumps. There are a few funny moments at the beginning where Magic is SURE he'll get reinforced if he can only stand on a mat without Max decking him... but Max's reaction to him being there is sooooooo much less than it is usually. And Magic soon recognises its not his turn.

Also, interesting that I recently I have been getting his halter on with clean loops by piggy backing on posing, but having the horses there has thrown him so he has to leave me when I show him the halter to go to the other mat. So, even with having broken the behaviour down that far, I STILL have a training hole (I think its still a poisoned cue actually, but it is so much better than it was!)

But all in all, his reactions are far less, he seems far more aware of ME and where I am and will avoid me rather than rush through me and he has changed so much in the last week. I wonder if he is managing to maintain this emotional control with the others at other times - I haven't seen him do more than shoo someone off (like he does to Magic in the clip) for a while, but that doesn't mean he's not still smashing Aero and Dan up the walls when he feels like it if they take him for granted. (Magic is protected from that, by being a) too clever to put himself in a dodgy position where Max might get him, and b) by being herd look out, so totally irreplaceable in everyone's eyes!)

Some random photos...

2011-07-11T19:55:00.002+01:00

Taken over the weekend when it was pouring with rain and had been all morning. Apparently, when it is raining hard all morning, the best thing to do before breakfast is to have a great big play-a-thon. They were all drenched, filthy and having a ball!

Photos are rubbish due to old knackered phone camera!

From left to right; Max, hiding Dan, Aero, Magic posing!

Max levading, Magic in front, Dan and Aero.
Max, Magic in front, Dan behind, Aero.

Obviously I missed all the shots of them cavorting and performing airs above the ground! :-)

More loopiness

2011-07-11T16:09:00.003+01:00

So I'm a bit further through the loopy training dvd. And its still blowing me away. This should be compulsory viewing for everyone!

My piece for today - you can poison the cue very very easily (whether using -R, +R or a combination of both) - simply by asking for the same thing over and over when the horse finds something difficult. Her example is, A leads to B leads to C leads to A etc. Where A is a cue to back up, B is the horse backing up, and C is the consequence (release of pressure and/or click/treat).

Because everything is a loop, if the horse finds the behaviour difficult, challenging, or is confused or frustrated, this will poison the cue AND the click and treat. This is because of the association, backing up is unpleasant for the horse at that time, so the cue becomes poisoned, which in turns poisons the reward!

I think I have done this with both Magic and Max (lucky Aero hasn't got past the foundation behaviours yet so he's ok!) in that I am STILL lumping behaviours up, rather than splitting them. I am improving, but its taken me sooooo long to learn it. And I think it is a very difficult thing to learn, speaking to other clicker trainers, its such a HUGE leap from how we behave with our horses "traditionally", I think its an even bigger leap of faith than deciding to go +R in the first place - and that's quite a biggie on its own!

The good news is, by going back to your foundation behaviours and getting REALLY clean loops, you can gradually build out to complicated behaviours by rewarding everything through the cleanliness of the loop! So just as you can poison it all, you can use each behaviour as a reward. And this is what the pose is doing for Magic and Max at the moment - especially as I am using the pose to reward them, AND as MY cue that they are ready for me to ask them something else!

Speaking of which, I promised video of Magic, and here is some! This is me trying to fill in training holes - he will walk with me beautifully, but stepping off the mat to walk with me is difficult (always ALWAYS train opposing behaviours!!!!) and so is staying with me in close proximity to a mat. What I love about this is that he comes away from the mat well, but does go back to it whenever he is unsure or confused. This is fine as this gives him confidence, and at one point you will see him go to the mat, stand on it then come straight back to me, like he got his mat-fix and can now carry on.

You can also see that what I do on the left rein is NOT the same as the right - look for the moment when Magic doesn't step forward when I am on his left (he is on my right) when he has to "time out" and go to mat because he doesn't understand me. That is my bad again, my lessons at the end of July can't come soon enough - I do not have enough awareness yet whilst I am actually out there what I am doing - but they are most certainly both doing the same thing in wanting me to their right! More learning for me!

OVerall though, I am loving his forward ears, and his interest in the process. He is definitely a happier participant when at liberty, the difference when on a headcollar is purely that he just seems less enthusiastic, and more "by rote". I don't want a by rote horse, I want an enthusiastic partner. I can see plenty of de-poisoning to be done with him as well as Max, and am sad that at least a % of that will be because I poisoned things by lumping in the first place. Ho hum, live and learn.

The best way to describe it is imagine a baby horse that has done NO training at all. Would we take him straight out and expect all this? No, but we do when we lump behaviours! And it is sooo much harder with our own horses (especially ones we have known for any length of time) because we "know" they "know" how to do x,y.z. When in reality, they DON'T! They have not learned most of it, but because we use -R constantly, they constantly follow the path of least resistance and it APPEARS that they have learned some of it!

Enough already, I'm off back to the Loopy DVD!

And there is more!

2011-07-09T20:37:00.002+01:00

Max, this morning. Loads better! Loads of giggling because it would appear I need three mats, or another pair of hands (note me shuffling off to retrieve mat when I realise I plonked it too far away!).

Armchair expert ALMOST rolled his eyes at me when I showed him, in a "tsk, schoolgirl error" kinda way. Those who know him will know what I mean. ;-)

He was still right though, of course!

But still, we had some times when I was on Max's left and he was walking, and proper calm about it he is too!

So next time, maybe more mats.... although I think now he "knows" we are just going from mat to mat, we may be ok. I really really need to learn to split things down even more, I am better with Max than Magic, but still not brilliant. I will learn :-)

I have loads of video of Magic, in case you think I keep forgetting him, but I might try to edit it down, its pretty dull!

Speaking of dull, I hope no non-clickers try to watch the vids, they must be bored to tears in nano-seconds. Maybe I could win the boring-est blog in blogdom award? Heehee!

Comparison...

2011-07-09T09:25:00.003+01:00

Video in post below was last week, this one is the next session we have done (this Thurs). I think its quite an improvement... but showed Simon, the armchair expert (no seriously, he immediately points out what I should try next, and of course it works, oh how irritating!) and he said "you need more than one mat". And of course, he's right. Again! OK Einstein. That is this weekend's task!

Its an improvement in my less reactivity, but he still can get me easily onto his right side. But using the cone helped a bit (hence the try two mats statement!). He is getting calmer still though and that is the best thing of all.

It ends when I take him back to the yard, its unedited, so there is an amusing bit of me running to turn camera off at end. Please don't watch!

Max, progress video from last week

2011-07-08T08:55:00.002+01:00

So, this is interesting, because although my body language is getting better (ie although I am still fairly rubbish, I am not *quite* so reactive or high energy when he presses my buttons!), he still can shuffle me out of his way, to put me back on his right side.

He is getting loads LOADS better about being out in the field, even with the scary blowing hedge where the camera is sitting.

So, my thinking is this. The pose has given him something that he can offer me at any time, and will (for the time being) always be reinforced. This means, its an "if in doubt" behaviour. ie, if he is unsure what I want, and would usually get stressed, he can offer the pose, get C/T and whilst that calms him, it also gives me time to try to figure out where I am going wrong.

And it is always down to me lumping behaviours rather than splitting them down! He is teaching me so much, and I am loving the breaking it down enough-ness. I just need to do this with Magic as well, who because he loves clicker so much, and enjoys it and finds it soooooo much easier and more fun (and not stressful) compared to ye olde method of traditional training, that he "lets" me lump behaviours. Which is most definitely my BAD!

OK, Max'svideo..... this is from 1st July. I have another from yesterday for comparison but its just uploading now....

As far as the "loopy" training is concerned, and the de-poisoning cues (ie the headcollar/being led etc) - we are ensuring he offers pose and goes straight back to pose from C/T. Then we are asking for the next step once he is back in pose (a step forward) and then C/T that. The pose acts as a cue for me to C/T him, so he has control over the situation, and I am trying NOT to ask him anything unless he is in pose..... So he knows if he isn't ready to be asked anything, he just doesn't pose.

I'm so glad I have a dog (!)

2011-07-06T15:57:00.002+01:00

Because I swear there are SOOOOO many books about training reactive dogs, compared to training reactive horses - and guess what? They all use positive reinforcement!

Again, I'm going to quote bits and pieces - feel free to insert "horse" for "dog" :whistlesinnocently: Also, the honesty and willingness to learn and change and accept previous assumptions as not neccessarily the best way, seems to be a regular theme in clicker trainers!

As does a paradigm shift in the meaning of their relationships with their animals - no longer do we "keep" animals for our purpose to do with as we will, it really does seem to be more about the relationship and s*d the ambitions!

Firstly, Emma Parsons, Click to Calm. Introduction. (.... = I missed a bit out!)

"This book is written to share with you what I have learned in treating Ben, my golden retriever.... He has been the catalyst for everything I do and teach as a dog trainer....

The gifts I have received from Ben not only improved my dog training skills, but also brought me face to face with with the person that I was and the person I have become. Once I didn't mind what punishment Ben would have to endure in our attempts to rid him of his aggression problem. If a trainer told me that he was going to hang Ben up by his toes from the ceiling for two hours, I would have said "Fine! As long as it stops the aggression."

My work with Ben at that time was all about me; my goals, my aspirations, what I wanted to accomplish in the obedience ring. I eventually learned, however that my goals had nothing to do with my dog. I trained the way I thought I had to in order to get the reliable behaviour I so eagerly sought. The dog had no choice in the matter.

The process of treating Ben's aggression through positive reinforcement, however, has taught me the importance of putting the needs of my dog before my own needs and wants. Whether its one of my own dogs or a client's dog, the needs of that particular dog come first. As a traditional trainer, this was a difficult lesson for me."

Oh, how I feel her pain! Learning that the world is not as you thought it is a scary place to be. At least in conscious incompetence I know how little I know! :-)

The second quote (for now!) is from Fiesty Fido by Patricia McConnell and Karen London and it hit home for Max - the reactive and bully-ish horse as opposed to Fido!

"We can't say definitively why so many leashed dogs become rude and reactive when walking by other dogs, but we can make some educated guesses. Some dogs probably feel trapped when they're on leash and are approaced by another dog. There's nothing like feeling vulnerable if you're nervous in the first place, and dogs on leashes know they aren't free to run away. Dogs who explode at other dogs for this reason are behaving as though their best defence is a good offence - using the time honoured "I'll get you before you get me" strategy.....

"Another explanation for dogs who bark and lunge at others is a learned association between seeing another dog and the aversive feeling of getting choked by the collar. Its easy to imagine a dog thinking, in some canine kind of way "I always get hurt when I see another dog on leash, so I'd better not see any dogs today. Uh oh, here comes one now! HEY YOU! You stay away from me - bark bark #@!%#growl. If you get closer I'll get hurt!" Sadly, some owners have been told to give stern corrections every time their dog moves towards or growls at another dog. That, of course, confirms the dog's suspicions about the danger of other dogs, and makes him worse. Besides, his dramatic display often does make the other dog go away, so even though he may get a correction from the leash, he still got what he really wanted."

Oooh, so Maxwell! If he lunges to the end of the headcollar to attack someone, the same thing applies. I also think this is one reason why headcollar is poisoned, and at libery he is much calmer, he can leave me, leave the other horses, send the other horses away with no aversives aimed at him.... and so on and so forth...

More on learning theory and Equitation Science

2011-07-06T15:38:00.004+01:00

Thanks to Mike Harrison who has forwarded me his notes of the BHS convention on 24th May with Andrew McLean and agreed that I could post them up here. Although they are Mike's notes, he says "it's really Andrew's (95%) & Warwick's (5%): I just hope I've written it down accurately. And to add again - it's not too scientific, especially in practice, more intuitive really."

Andrew McLean 24May2011 (1)

He also sent me an Australian magazine article on the convention

July11 Proof BHS Convention 1

I'm glad the BHS are "getting" it! Maybe one day they will overhaul their training system and train people how to train horses AND riders - revolutionary! And yes, I was a product of the system many moons ago when I passed my BHSII - I have spent the 15 years since trying to learn how to teach :-)

Softly softly catchee monkey

2011-07-01T14:21:00.002+01:00

Magic - hacked with Mum and Aero on Thurs, managed to lead past the scary wall with flapping plastic (having stopped to target it first.) Still can't quite bring himself to get near the water trough that has been abandoned opposite it, which creates a tunnel-of-terror for a Magic, but he led past both ways and was happy to investigate the wall and its flappy cover, even if he was "lala-ing" the trough.

Today, it was very hot and there are loads of horse flies. So having put all the gear out for Max, after we'd finished, I took Magic out for a play. In between random cone collections (!) we had some fun, me trying to sort out my body language, and him trying to train me to do it properly.

Its amazing how light and how SLOW I need to be to keep him from getting high energy. And we have figured out between us (me being slower than him to catch on, as usual!) that if we are walking, and I want him to lighten his forehand and collect to wait for me, that I can get him to take a step back by walking, turning on the spot to face him, and then stepping back the way I came. I have it on video but it will probably be weeks before I manage to upload it.

Still, I was pleased and he was great!

Max, well the flies were baaaaad. And he showed me great stuff as to how much he doesn't want me on his left. But he did REALLY well, pose and mat, then off round the cones (collecting a few on route!) and back to mat. Right rein he was spot on. Left rein, I had to get him back to the mat before he got me to his right side. Again, me too slow to sort body language, and left side of him is obviously well poisoned. I used a rope halter as he seems to like it, he does not perform all the behaviours that we get from a head collar, so I am spending time de-poisoning the headcollar, but can at least use the rope halter to do other things in in the meantime. He was much calmer and I felt much safer with him. Again on video, I'll probably have loads more to say once I've watched it back (probably mainly OMG how bad is my body language???!!)

Meanwhile, fencing may start next week? So moving by the end of July might be workable, WHOOP!

Lightbulb

2011-06-26T12:19:00.003+01:00

Magic and I went for a hack with P and Dan, and he was really good. Even managed to take me to see the scary wall with flapping cover.

When we got back, I got the mat out and did a few clicks of stand on your mat and pose. Then I put headcollar on and started with stand on your mat with your back feet. It was interesting.... Magic came off the mat really well each time I asked (because obviously, the first thing that happened each time was he put his fronts on the mat and posed!) but would swing his bum out so he could step around the mat with his hinds.

I began by clicking him for stepping forward straight so hinds were just behind mat, and fronts just in front. Then we quickly got to 1 foot on the mat.... but each time I asked for a step, he'd step off (just like with fronts at the start).

By the end of 5 mins, he was standing with both hinds squarely on the mat! Clever boy. Its amazing how he now seems to work things out really quickly, as long as I break things down into small enough behaviours that lead us easily to the end result!

Then I did a few mins with Max. He was loose in the barn and the others were all outside in the yard. I did wonder whether this would be too much for him, but I did as before, and waited for him to pose.... at the moment, the pose means "Ok Mum, I am concentrating and not stessing" so we can do something.

It was a different environment, so we did a few C/T for posing nicely. Interestingly, the pose involves his ears being forward, and not because I have trained it as part of the behaviour, I think he does like to have control and know I will wait until he is in pose before doing anything else.

We did more on headcollar, and he is loads better, but at one point I was holding the headcollar around his nose (like when you first put it around) and waited as he was leaning forward a bit... this obviously became too much as he walked off but then turned and posed and waited for me to come back and do it again, when he stood like a rock.

I then twigged that I need to get him happy with me touching him, so I placed a hand on his shoulder.... and he looked a bit tense, but then posed, so C/T.... then I realised that hand on his shoulder should probably become the cue for pose so we don't get it all the while. So we did a bit on that, and he was really good.

He is definitely better when not attached - so either loose in stable with me outside it, or loose in yard so he has choices. I think most his tension comes from him wanting to do the right thing, but getting flustered about what the right thing is, and feeling that then there will be an escalation of pressure - which in the old days, there WOULD have been, and even now, sometimes HE can escalate pressure if he leans into me etc.

Its how to deal with all this, without getting to that place, because him knowing he can leave, makes a big difference to him I think. Just like him knowing that he can cue ME to say he's ready to work, or not and I will listen! I need to give him a yes/no signal that he can use on me! Magic is pretty clear with his, although no rarely happens now, because if I kind of know if Magic is in the zone or not when I first set foot on the yard!

Meanwhile, we have fields at home (as opposed to fields looking like woodland), and some ditches, so we just need a few more ditches and then the whole lot fenced and we will be there....."not long now" is my mantra at the mo!