No pictures today - but I sure did spend a lot of quality Curly time today! First up was Lacey - I have been working with her quite a bit, but I have not posted anything about her much. She has been making progress each and every time. I can now rub her all over with my hand, a rope and the long dressage whip, she will stand to have her legs touched, she was always good about the front, but now she lets me touch the back down to the bottom as well. She doesn't want me to pick them up though - moves away as if she thinks that is what I am asking for. So I put some more thought into it and I know that with other feral horses I have put a rope around their leg and told them "foot" as a cue to pick it up and then lifted the foot with the rope. The advantage of this is that I am not crowding the horse's space and yet they are still getting the message of what I want them to do and it worked will with Lacey - it took a few tries, but she was picking up her foot on cue and licking and chewing like crazy - what a good girl!
Next I went so spend some time with *Sheila and we were working on similar things and we had a short but good session - she was accepting the whip on all four legs today - which is huge progress!
Later in the day I rode *Charm and she is just turning into a star! She is behaving so well and trying so hard I am just so happy with her progress. I took her out walking on a lead for a few days to get her used to being out and about - soon we will hit the trails!
Shelly
www.curlystandardplace.com
The RAC began in 2007 and continued until 2015. It was created to unite all curly horse owners to encourage and motivate each other and to promoting the breed. Participating riders earn points to win amazing prizes. This blog was created to share with others their personal journey with each other and the public. *This blog is not a training blog and any techniques or methods shown here are not necessarily enforced by the RAC. Consult your trainer for advice. http://curlyhorsecountry.com
Way to go Shelly!!! It is awesome to see your regular posts! Always enjoy reading about your horse's progress. Lacey is the new curly from Kim, right?
ReplyDeleteYes, Lacey is the BIG smooth coated Curly mare from Kim. She was "quite" feral when she arrived, but she is doing great, making good progress and she has such a soft eye - I really enjoy working with her. Sometimes it seems slow, but on the other hand, she hasn't jmped out of my round pen lately!
ReplyDeleteShelly
www.curlystandardplace.com
I like your rope/"foot" idea, but I'd be afraid a feral horse would freak out at the rope. You don't find that to be the case? If they didn't mind the rope, you'd be getting in desensitizing also.
ReplyDelete