All about my horses!

Missouri Fox Trotter

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Just a Trailride! Dog attack; Riders Bucked Off; Horse Runaways (Not Tenor, Sonny, Susan or Sharon)

Just a day in the park trail ride and Missouri Fox Trotters rescued their fellow fox trotters.

Many hero’s appeared today during a drama at James A Reed Wild life Park in Lee’s Summit.Sonny will be nominated for Hall of Fame. Many hero humans were involved without their names being recorded.

Sonny, Sharon, Tenor and I went on a trail ride today  at James A. Reed Wildlife Park.  We rode a total distance of 1.3 miles.  Trail riders might sneer at this minuscule miles, but Hero Sonny was born and Missouri Fox Trotter drama is saved forever in this story.

Sharon and I pulled into the horse trailer parking lot today and we’re prepping Sonny and Tenor for a trail ride.  A car drove by and stopped to talk to Sharon.  The report was as follows:  Two horses were attacked by a dog or dogs.  Their riders fell off and the horses ran off.

Sharon told me and I immediately decided which trail was probably the furthest and safest trail to take to avoid dogs.  After we had warmed Sonny and Tenor up, another group of riders showed up.  We told them what was told to us and they immediately decided to try to find the horses and help.  As Sharon and I rode on the “safe” trail, I wondered about being brave or embracing caution.  My thought was to avoid being attacked, not help with rescue.

About a half mile on my “ safest” trail choice, we spotted two horses standing with no humans.  One horse had one rein on the ground with no other rein.  The other horse had a looped rein around a front leg.  Since there were no humans present, we decided these must be the runaway horses.  They were standing quietly.

I called 911 and was connected with the Lee’s Summit police.  I repeated the dog attack, bucked off riders and runaway horses story and reported that my friend and I had just discovered the run-away horses. I told the person we were on the south side trail in the park when I saw a car on a nearby road.  I told the emergency guy this was the south side paved road that goes around the park.  I was wrong, but it didn’t matter.

Sharon and I stayed where we were for a short time.  I yelled, “Help” several times, but no one responded.  We waited.  Here is where Hero Sonny emerged.  Tenor and Sonny were urged  to get closer to the runaway horses.  The runaway didn’t move.  We all waited. Hero Sonny decided he could leave the herd and get close to the road so Sharon could flag down some help.  Sonny left the runaway horses and his best friend Tenor.  It takes a brave horse to leave the herd.  (Sonny’s value is now $2 billion!)  Sadly, even though Tenor was with the run-away horses, he got upset.  His herdmate Sonny left him!  He made a deep distress cry and moved.  He moved backwards.  His amazing rider tried to turn him from left to right, but Tenor stayed anxious and moving.  The amazing rider, me, thought about the two women who had been bucked off and decided she didn’t want to be #3.  She rang a cry of distress to Sharon, “Come back!  I need you!”

Sonny headed back and with some urging from his rider (me), Tenor was able to move forward, leave the runaways and get close to Sonny.  Tenor’s anxiety subsided.  Sharon and I decided to get back to the road to get help.  The two horses slowly followed us.  Sharon dismounted and after some quiet patience, caught the bay one rein horse.  It took a few more minutes and she was able to get the palomino looped rein horse.   I was holding Sonny’s reins.

A few cars passed by without stopping for my emergency distress waving.  What the heck?  They waved back at me.  Finally a truck stopped and the driver and his son-in-law got out.  It took a while for them to understand Tenor and Sonny were not the problem.  The son-in-law took the bay one rein horse. Another car drove up and I was able to stop them.  The woman got out of the passenger seat and agreed to take the palomino looped rein horse.

I asked the pickup truck driver if he would drive Sharon to the trailer parking lot as she (nor I) can mount these tall horses from the ground.  Instead he boosted Sharon up on Sonny.  He boosted her wrong leg first, but Sharon got him to boost the offside leg, not the inside leg that needed to be in the stirrup.

Sharon and I were mounted.  We had two people leading two horses a half mile!  The palomino horse had blood running down a back leg.  How had that happened?    I noticed some anxiety with this horse and a few horse beats of a gaited horse.  I wondered if the palomino could be a fox trotter.

(Both runaway horses are fox trotters!  I told one woman that we had a local Fox Trotter club.)

Our hero’s and their vehicles made it back to the parking lot.  The one reined horse was tied to a wooden tie-out.  The other horse needed a tie rope so Sharon loaned Sonny’s lead rope.  I dug out a multitude of halters and lead roles from the trailer.  Sharon put one of those on Sonny and it fit better than the halter she was using.  Another set of horse people descended upon us.  They must have just arrived in the parking lot.  Explanations were given and suddenly the women owners of the horses showed up!  We probably all needed a Zanex calming pill by this time.  I remember taking my first calm breath much later when Sharon and I were driving back.

A fire truck and ambulance arrived.  Thank goodness they didn’t use the siren.  We heard sirens from afar, but assumed they were going somewhere else when we no longer heard them.  I did not notice them drive into the parking lot until they were right beside us.  My attention was fully on the horses and two women.

Gradually, the riders us the story.  It was a pit bull and Mastiff.  I also heard they were German Shepard and Mastiff. The dogs were running loose and far away from the owners.  The dogs had to run a distance to catch the horses.   They attacked the horses who fought and bucked and the two women went to the ground.   The women were both attacked and bitten.  Then they took off after the horses.  The first people who arrived to help the women were the dog owners.  When told her dogs had bitten the women, the owner said, oh it’s all right, the dogs are vaccinated.
The blood on the palomino’s back leg was from a dog bite.  (Good Lordy!)  Both women were bitten.  One had a blue medical  band around her lower thigh.  This was protecting her dog bite.  The dog chased one horse and then returned to attack the other horse.  (Good Lord!)

One of the women told the rescuers that her friend just had a recent knee replacement and falling off a horse was awful.  The medical responders told her she needed to go to her doctor, but she was walking around.  Both women went to a doctor.  The palomino ran up a $1000 vet bill his first day at the vet and had to stay overnight.

While we were both there, the owner of the dog called.  (The dog has no future.)

Both women hugged me and thanked me for getting the horses back to the parking lot.  We got Sonny’s rope back and decided we could leave.  Sonny and Tenor did their amazing loading job.  Oh, I forgot to mention that when we arrived at the parking lot, Tenor was peeing a 5 lb bucket of pee on the floor.  The trailer floor has some flakes, but nothing to withstand a 5 gallon pee bucket.  Sonny is loaded first which requires only Sharon to enter and exit the trailer.  I just send Tenor in and don’t tie him.  So Sharon’s boots suffered from about a half inch of pee during both loading/unloading sessions.  I need a deeper layer of flakes to cover the floor with some depth.

Sharon stated maybe we should only ride at the park on a weekday afternoon.  This was a Sunday afternoon.  Many horse and dog people work during the week.  Work keeps them out of the park!

What a day.  I decided a huge Margherita at out local Mexican restaurant was necessary for dinner tonight.  I might be sobered up now.  It was tough to ask Sharon if she wanted to ****.  My voice could not say the word trail ride.  But tomorrow is Monday and I don’t want to get James A Reed PTSD.  We are riding tomorrow!

Note:  If anyone knows these women, please let them know my name or tell me.  I want to pay for their membership in our local fox trotter club.

 

 

Another Banner Flying Lead Change Day!

Group lesson Monday was another day for the flying change record book! Group lesson today was two quarter horses and a fox trotter. One quarter horse is a former reining horse! The other QH is designated by me as a million dollar horse….safe for anyone and has heart and try. He is learning flying lead changes, but because of his breed and try, it’s easy for him. Flying changes are difficult for many reasons for all riders!

All us riders are ornery. Only Erin can keep the humans under control.

We are lucky today as the temperature climbed to a scorching 41 degrees!

Leg yield practice: Erin had us leg yield in and out on the rail going the long way of the arena

Transitions: Our job was to flat foot/ extended walk for QH’s on the long sides and foxtrot/trot on the ends of the arena.

Canter: We cantered full circles around the arena.

Now time for our solo lead change or counter canter (for one of us) figure eights.

Fancy and I took our turn and did flying changes. We waited for our next turn and did flying changes. There were no missed changes. Every time I asked, I got a correct flying lead change.

And that was the Banner Celebration. Usually when we start our lead changes adventure, we miss one or several changes before she comes through. Usually we have some failures in the warm up flying lead change requests.

Not Today! Every time I asked for a flying change, she gave it to me.

Erin pointed that out to me and I fainted! Luckily, my faint was mental, not physical and I stayed in the saddle.

Fancy got special attention. I took her saddle off and she got to roll in the arena dirt. We watched the other two riders while I rubbed and petted her head extensively. She also got a handful of grain.

Everyone wants to be loved by Erin Patterson, Dog, cat and horses want to be in her lap!

First Flying Change is Magnificent!

Yesterday Fancy gave me the best present I have wanted in all my second childhood years with my horses.  My dream is clearly written in both books I have written about my horse journey.

On 12/23/2019, Fancy gave me a flying lead change.

She is a smart, athletic horse who loves to GO.  I am blessed.

Thanks to Erin Patterson for setting up lead change patterns and coaching in our individual and group lessons!

Thanks to Tony Vaught who developed her potential and gave her the “restart” a horse like her needs.

I am blessed!

Leg Yield Fox Trot

Fancy has reached Super Star status. After an amazing horsemanship and cow clinic where both Tony and Jenny rode and “developed” her, I believe she has attained the super horse status. Oh my, it was fun to watch Tony implementing impulsion training fixing her slight fixation on “no”. She got to be a sweaty galloping and cantering horse of yes.

I watched Erin ride her in a lesson. Erin was prepping Fancy for flying changes. She did a leg yield with Fancy in the fox trot gait. Long ago, Velvet taught me a leg yield fox trot was impossible. Erin told me to leg yield Fancy at a fox trot the next time I rode. I snorted.

The snort is on me. Fancy did a leg yield at a fox trot. I worship the athletic talent of this horse!

Fancy’s damn is gone, but her sire, JJ, is producing super talented babies in Mississippi with Beth Pearson.

Virtual Horse Shows During the Pandemic

Keeping social distance, stay at home, quarantine and home shuttering is happening in our world. Horse show managers have hit on the idea of virtual shows. Perform the class at home and video it. Post the video. The judge will watch the class videos and determine the placings.

I really like this idea. The dress is usually casual. The horse grooming is not as intense. The hours of waiting for your class to start is eliminated. There is no trailer hauling. Those things are all what I dislike about horse shows.

This is great for me! My classes are all pattern classes. There is no waiting for a million people to perform their patter while you sit and wait. You and your unbathed horse just do the pattern while a sainted person films!

What could be better! The only thing better is that a sainted trainer coaches and films you. Fancy lives at Patterson Performance Stable. She is on an owner care program. I also give her a daily medicine that I keep at home. I dose her horse feed and bring it to her. I am essential to Fancy!

That is my world of heaven right now.

The class is Ranchmanship. There is a flying lead involved. Riding with one hand is required. I have rode Fancy twice during the last month. I try to ride with one hand, but Fancy always convinces me that I need both hands.

I am doing a flying lead change pattern using one hand. WHAT! Miraculously, she went where every my body directed. Our flying lead change did not work. I might not place in the class. Ha! Who cares! I have another week to film and submit. I failed in correctly completing the pattern. My brain kept deserting me during this screaming unbelievable riding with one hand a do a flying change SCREAM!

Fancy April Update 4/9/2020

We are living in the time of the Corona Virus Pandemic. A horse was withdrawn early from Erin Patterson’s training since all the horse shows are being cancelled. That gave me a chance to enroll Fancy into training. The goal is for Fancy to be able to do flying lead changes while being ridden.

You readers might know my twenty years of flying lead change addiction. With Fancy, flying lead changes (FLC), are very possible. She needs to have an expert rider with feel and balance, who understands FLC. Fancy needs daily practice to learn how her legs should work. Fancy needs to understand (and obey) the rider cue to perform the FLC.

The goal is for the passionate, crazed Susan to be able to cue Fancy to do them. I’m happy to report that the plan is going well. Erin gets FLC 95% of the time. Most FLC that happen are smooth. A few are not, as Fancy occasionally braces her front legs, pops up or the changes in the front and back legs are not done at the same time and it is chaos in the saddle.

Never did I have a horse that could do flying changes like Fancy is doing now. I am “in heaven”.

Erin’s next plan is to ride Fancy first, do flying changes, let me ride and coach me.

I just went into part two of heaven. This might start soon.

My goal lifetime goal is to pass the Level 4 Parelli program. Level 4 involves Finesse, Free style, Online and Liberty. I have a chance to pass the test for all four of these areas before I die or before something happens that would take away my ability to to ride. This really is a race against age and all that it involves. My first step is to pass Finesse as I get to use a bridle and ride with reins in two hands. Stayed tuned!

Just Another Day in the Life

Great day

  1. Started our eating time at small town cafe where our great waitresses knows our order better than we do and coffee is non-stop.
  2. Fabulous vision exam for Terry with Dr. Harper st Vision Quest.  Dr Harper is kind, caring and technical superior diagnosis.
  3. Home to feed and water horses.  Sweetie tries to keep the stall clean by pooping in the heated water bucket.  Ugh.  The next water bucket I checked had something odd floating.  I thought, “is that another poop?” I picked it out of the water.  Nope, it was a dead mouse.  I was holding a dead mouse.  SCREAM!
  4. Went barn to ride Fancy.  The new horse in training was having a lesson with her new owner.  The horse has changed and become trusting and confident.  The owner did wonderful riding her.  I was so impressed and heartened by this horse essentially becoming saved by Erin’s savvy Horsemanship.
  5. Riding Fancy in the arena while Erin was giving a lesson to an exuberant young girl and her older sister.  The young girl didn’t stop talking during the lesson.  Young exuberant girls are very funny.  I had to make certain my laughing was done quietly.
  6. Cauliflower pizza and wine closed the night!

Canter Crazy & Lost Saddle

Well now I’ve gone and done it. It’s now difficult for me to get Fancy to go into a gait. We just want to canter. Fancy canter pop-up all over the place in anticipation of me asking for her to canter. Finally we were able to flat foot walk, but not fox trot. Finally we got a fox trot. Then I asked in my normal way for canter. What the heck, she was upset at my request. We cantered. I tried for lead change. Fancy changed in front. There were many stops and rubs during all this drama, It’s not her fault. I’m canter crazy. That has to change. I’m going back to transition from walk, flat foot walk, foxtrot and canter. Darn it!

Time to stop. I dismounted from a gate. I took off the bridle. She’s been perfect at standing still waiting on me. I did not put on her halter. I unfastened the girth. Saddle is so great it stays on while I lead her to stall. Whoops! Something scared her and she leaped sideways. Saddle came off. Saddle landed on ground with saddle blanket on top. She started running. Tail was up! I screamed at the other rider in the arena. She was headed the opposite direction. “LOOSE horse! Susan B’s new Reining horse passed the test. She was not worried.

Back to Fancy. She did not run more than 20 feet. She ran, stopped and went over to sniff the saddle. A shocked me, went to get her with bridle rein. I led her a few feet with the bridle rein around her neck, opened the arena door and let her go to her stall and waiting grain.


Over the Hump

Now and then in the human life, we experience a hump. A hump blocks forward progress.

Fancy and I have made amazing progress. I realize she is a most amazing horse. She is smart and athletic. She can do anything if asked “right”.. Just within this past thirty days, her canter has become amazing. She is balanced and in better control. I’m in shock and awe up in the saddle.

We come to the time where I’m asking Fancy to do something athletically difficult. She is right there with me. It’s a difficult maneuver. I am having difficulty communicating all the cues needed. My body has to be balanced. My leg cues have to be perfect. My focus has to be perfect. I am searching for the best way for Fancy to do the maneuver.

Enter Erin Patterson, awesome trainer and owner of Patterson Performance Stable where Fancy boards. I asked Erin to give me a lesson by riding Fancy and working out the best way for me to give Fancy the best opportunity to have her four legs perform the maneuver.

This was an awesome lesson. Erin showed and told me what my body needed to do. Fancy got experience in trying to do what Erin’s body cues were asking. Fancy made a lot of progress. Even though I wasn’t riding, my body learned a lot by watching Erin.

We ride on! Now I can’t wait to ride Fancy and get practiced in providing the cues and remaining balanced! The hump has been bulldozed. Yee Haw!

Thank you Erin Patterson for your dedication to horses and their crazy humans!

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Whine Negated

Here was my whine yesterday on Facebook:

“Today I learned it’s more difficult to trot and canter over poles as it is to jump over jumps. When Fancy’s front foot steps on the pole, we’re headed dirt-downwards!
Who knew?
One glass of of wine night
And turtle cheesecake!”

You are not going to believe what I’m going to tell you today! I can’t even believe it and I lived it.

On this day, Fancy and I cantered over the poles both ways of the arena. On this day She wore a bridle, but I did not touch the reins. Essentially, I rode her bridleless, cantering over the poles. No, she did not stumble, Yes, I am near death in astonishment

I have a goal to pass four high level horsemanship goals. One of the goals is riding bridleless. I will use a neck rope, my leg cues, body position to communicate where I wish to go, and what speed or gait to use along with a “stop” cue. Stopping and slowing down are really important cues for your horse. Stopping is very close to “save my life” kind of cue. Fancy and I have not had a good stop cue until just recently…like this month.

Also, my short thin ropes that I use as neck ropes have been washed a million times, shrunk a wee bit and have become too short to use as neck ropes. Just recently I ordered a neck rope from Hand Crafted Jewels. I get my halters and ropes there too. http://www.handcraftedjewls.com/

I vowed to start my bridleless riding when I got the neck rope. Fancy is slowing down now and stopping when I give the cues. It is finally time that I can safely start the bridleless quest.

The neck rope appeared in the mail. It fit Fancy perfectly. I was just going to canter her online over the poles today. Whoops, the neck rope fit so well and she did so good canter online over the poles, I’ll just take a short ride.

You can see the bridle reins. The reins are wrapped around the saddle horn. I did not touch the reins during the ride today.

You can see the neck rope and the reins wrapped around the saddle horn.

The ride was short all right. It was short because Fancy performed amazing. She cantered over the poles both directions. She slowed down and stopped when I asked. She went the direction and path I wanted. I CANT BELIEVE IT!

I, Fancy, am a force

I dismounted, petted her, gave her carrot treats, her grain, brushed her and let her out.

Good Lordy!

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