Posts by Susan

Last week at the group lesson, Fancy appeared to have a problem cantering to the right.  We did one flying lead change, left to right and stopped there. We had another lesson today and again, Fancy had problem cantering to the right.  She acted like she wanted to switch over to the left lead and did a little canter hop.  She seemed to want to canter on the left lead. Erin was suspicious.  She had not felt this the hitch the time she rode and wanted to feel the problem.…

I am thinking about my past journey with horses.  In my third book, I realized that I still had retained a fear of bolting, but Cisco and Lucky cured that.  That fear came years before with a ruined horse named Sue.  Sue had a fear of arms.  She did short bolts while I was riding.  She always came right back down to a slower gait or a stop when my alarmed hands pulled back on the reins.  She did these mini bolts enough times with me that it affected me.…

Neighborhood Trail Ride on New Year’s Eve:  Skateboard park with skaters, small waving gas line flag markers,, timber wilderness, new home construction with basement, gravel piles, dirt piles, and wide dirt tunnel. Emma, the German Shepherd dog, made her startle once. Emma usually travels a football field behind Fancy, but she got closer. (Fancy delights in treating Emma like a cow in a cutting class so Emma usually keeps a distance!) We traveled at the flat foot walk most of the ride.  We switched into fox trot for a half…

It's Liberty Day.  I'm trying to prepare Ms. Fancy for a Parelli Level 4 Liberty Audition.  We are playing in a 60 foot round pen and enjoying life...because I have treats for the sprightly mare when she succeeds in even slightly doing something I'm asking.  I decided making a 360 turn would be a fine task for the Liberty audition.  We work on it.  I give her signal after signal, she has no idea what stupid thing I'm asking for and eventually, I get a ragged 360 degree turn.  We…

Trailer Goal:  I point, Fancy loads and Fancy Stays in Trailer. A human fiddles with trailer, walks into the barn, picks up halter/lead rope and waits for Fancy to come into the stall. “Are you crazy, human?”  Fiddling with trailer and picking up halter means a riding workout in Fancy's language.  Fancy exists the stall and waits to see if this is a feeding opportunity.  “Nope, the human holds the halter.” Human goes into stall and out into the pasture.  Fancy walks away about 20 feet.  Human sighs.  Fancy turns…