Update will come sooner or later. Tomorrow I'm going over to the place next door to be evaluated by the trainer, T. She's real nice, and I'm actually glad she makes people pass her evaluations before they come onto the property--I've had enough of idiots for one lifetime. Ace and Captain continue to do well with the new adjustments, and their SmartPaks are (hopefully!) coming tomorrow.
That's all for now, but I might have an update tomorrow!
It takes a special kind of person to forget their camera three times in one day. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures, but I do have stories!
So far I'm loving every minute of going to see the horses three times a day. Pretty soon it'll only be twice, as I'm slowly petering them off of lunch, but I'm thinking about riding Ace around midday so I don't have to deal with the dark. Plus then they can be ridden separately, so they're alone in the paddock for a while each day. They've become just a liiittle attached!
Anyway, I am continually more and more impressed by Ace's behavior. I was fully expecting a nervous wreck, but he is completely calm. Even the barn owner, C, says that she's really enjoying my two boys because they're totally laid back and hardly make a peep. At feeding time they get pretty rowdy, but I think that's normal.
So tonight my sister didn't want to go out, so I left early and headed out there to ride. I was originally only going to ride Ace in the big round pen on site, but I felt a little stupid so I took him out for a ride up the driveway. Captain was a bit beside himself at being left alone in the paddock, and every time he saw Ace he whinnied (and for such a big boy, his whinny is quite cute and girly). I thought that was going to upset Ace, but nope, he walked on like a pro. I rode him up to the gate with no problem, and then figured I might as well take a ride up the road. I pressed the button with my foot to open the gate, and out we went! He was so awesome. His head was up and he was alert, but he didn't spook, even when the Gator at the fancy schmancy place next door revved up and drove off pulling a rattling cart.
I'm pleased as punch with how he's acting, to say the least. I'm so relieved that I can actually take him places and not worry about him having a cow. Captain's also having fun at the new place, and enjoys having a blankie on again. Like I said above, I forgot my camera all three times I went out today, but I'll hopefully remember it tomorrow morning when I go to feed and clean!
Sunday was the big day, and I got up suuuper early to make sure Ace was nice and relaxed for the hour plus trailer ride. I was very anxious about a lot of things regarding him, not only the trailer loading but the trip itself, and how he would react to a new atmosphere after almost four years of being at the ranch.
Guess what?? He was a STAR! It took about fifteen minutes to load him up behind Captain, and he dove into the hay bag and let me clip the bungie-tie onto him. He was busy munching so he didn't really notice when I did the buttrope and closed the door. Both he and Captain were outfitted with Kensington booties, flymasks, and their 1200D sheets, but I was still terrified. Last weekend I loaded Ace up in our trailer and he stayed in, where as before he would back himself out in about ten milliseconds. I tried something new though, in that the food was ONLY in the trailer and every time he backed out, I immediately said "load up!" in a firm voice and clucked. He seemed to get the message last Saturday, as he did on Sunday. I'm very impressed that Ace will now walk right in with his front feet, and will go as far as having his hind legs touching the bumper of the trailer, though he needs a little extra encouragement (in the form of grain) to come all the way in.
Captain loooves his trailer and even gets mad when he sees it and he can't go in. Needless to say, I was completely worry-free about his trip, because I know he's in hog heaven when he's in there stuffing his face. It was the opposite with Ace, because I was imagining scrambling and trailer rocking and pulling back and rearing and cracking his head open on the roof... Well, to my very pleasant surprise, none of that happened! They were quiet as lambs the whole way down. I didn't hear a peep from Ace at all. He was gently rocking the trailer when we were stuck at a long traffic light, but I think that was the way, way, lesser of many evils.
We arrived a little later than expected, just because my mom and I both firmly believe in not going too fast while trailering (I think the fastest we went was 45, LOL). Anyway, we pulled up to the place and parked, and I cracked open the back door and unhooked Ace before I had my mom undo the buttrope. I wasn't sure how he'd unload after an hour plus trip, in a new environment with new smells, but he slowly backed out like a pro and looked around with his ears perked. Um, what?? Everyone was expecting an explosion out of him and he sits there and LOOKS AROUND. I was so proud of him right then it almost killed me. Captain couldn't care less about where the hell he is as long as he's not roomies with Jack the Ripper, so I think that might've helped, but still.
I'll update with pictures tomorrow, and to let you know how Ace has been doing during our rides (take a wild guess, I know I'm surprised!). We'll be going next door on Thursday-ish to the facility with a beautiful indoor ring, fully set up all-weather jumping arena, and mock XC course, so we can actually get a work out in rather than riding up and down the driveway. Tomorrow I think I'll take a trip down the road, since it's one of those quiet country streets that sees maybe ten cars a day.
I'll have a post up for y'all tomorrow, and if not please bug me until I do, you have my permission!
So, I forgot to do Ghost it Forward, but it's past Halloween so the fun is kind of sucked out of it. But, instead of doing that meme, I was kind of reminded about something I've been wanting to do for a while by the mastermind behind Now THAT'S a Trot! When she tagged me she said I'd restored her faith in Western Pleasure, and I would love to do that for everyone. It's not an easy thing to restore your faith in it, but I love the ideals for pleasure. If you know the sport like I do, it's obvious that judges DO go by the registry standard. But, if you've got a class full of four-beating peanut rollers, does no one win? No, there has to be a winner in every class (unless the judge is like Cookie who judged all of my 4-H shows and told us we all sucked so there was no winner). Unfortunately, those four-beating peanut rollers have set a bad standard for my discipline of choice, and the horses that are actually good at what they do are branded as "icky" by default.
The video you see above has some awesome example horses who kick ass in the show pen. Are they "icky"? I certainly don't think so. I think that THEY should be the standard for western pleasure, not four-beating peanut rollers. I know, I know. Right now these horses are the exception rather than the norm, and that stinks. But, they win a hell of a lot more than four-beating peanut rollers, and I can contest to that.
One Hot Krymsun can also contest to that. If you don't know who he is, you have been living under a rock. He's a three time AQHA World champion, four time AQHA Congress champion, and has life time earnings of over $65,000. While I don't support the riding of two year olds at all, you can see that this horse is a beautiful natural mover that exemplifies the western pleasure standard set in the AQHA and APHA rulebook. He is also AQHA's leading sire, so from that I'd reckon that people in the pleasure industry do want to recreate that standard.
When I first learned to ride, I got dressage lessons. For over three years I learned to ride without any hands, and it stuck with me. Even when we had to downgrade to western giddy-up lessons and get something less expensive, I really only used my hands to reinforce my whoa or downward transition, and to steer. When you watch people in every discipline in the warm-up ring or at home, about 80% of them have their hands in their face or are stuffing their horse into a frame. I was in training with a very popular Northern California AQHA trainer for a long time as well. She told me that good movement starts from the withers back, and that you can't ride a horse's head and neck. That philosophy has been the basis for my riding techniques since I first heard her say it. Since then I've been successful WITH my western pleasure horses in dressage, jumping (at rated hunter shows), lower-level eventing, western riding, and drill team, among many other things. While I don't have the money to show big time APHA or AQHA, we do pretty well at our local shows, and I've been to the Gold N Grand and done well there. I'm sure many others have the same story as I do, as well. When a horse is a true athlete there are no limits on what they can do.
My question is simple: is it really western pleasure that's so horrible? Take a good, hard look at your discipline of choice. There has to be someone whose methods you don't agree with, and whose horses are not natural or relaxed movers. Well, I'm telling you this. The top dogs in the western pleasure industry (like One Hot Krymsun, or this horse, who I absolutely love) probably think that four-beating peanut rollers are "icky" too. So, next time you watch a western pleasure horse, take off the predispositions to this discipline that you may have worn for years. Truly watch the horse, and ask yourself if he looks like a pleasure to ride, with true gaits, impulsion, and a relaxed, kind expression. If you answer yes, than that is a western pleasure horse that fits the description in the rulebooks. A horse should be judged by that, and not by what discipline they do, for just as with breeds, there are exceptional representatives and some not so good. I ask you to remember this with every discipline, also, not just mine.
There are always going to be bad seeds in every equine sport. Please don't let the ones in mine bias you to the horses who are awesome at what they do.
YIKES! Things have been a complete whirlwind, so much so that I've even halfway put off school this week. Is there any way to make time just stop so I can stop and take a breath????? Last Thursday I was sent a letter dated the 21st that stated I had to have my horses off of the premises within 14 days or they would be impounded, along with my tack and horse trailer. (To which I said, like hell! I have paid my board early every single month for the year and a half I have been there. I'm paid up until December. They'll take my f*ing horses over my dead, stiff body). The reason? Oh, because my mom used to moderate a Yahoo list, and a post they didn't like got through. She's not the moderator anymore, yet they still pin it on her. Grr... Luckily my mom got on the phone and made a fuss, and we now have a hearing. The horses can stay at least until then, though I'm still moving them the day after that hearing. Too bad they don't know about THAT yet. Like hell, I'll give notice.
Things are obviously not going well out at the ranch. Well, in all honesty, there are a million things wrong with it, but after almost two years without horses it was the perfect place to be able to relax and have fun and enjoy Captain, and without it I wouldn't have found Ace. But...
1. It's an hour away. Gas is killing me. I can't see my horses but two or three times a week, and for me, I feel like I am horribly neglecting my horses. I am the kind of person who used to check the weather hourly to see if the horses needed their blankies on or off. I am usually over an hour early for the vet or farrier, so I can get the horses groomed and loved on before they are subjected to such *GASP* horrible people. Now, I can't even be there for the vet or farrier, unless I can somehow get a ride up there. Instead I have to pass on messages to the barn manager, and they usually get lost in translation.
2. Speaking of vet care... I had to threaten that I wouldn't pay my bill to even get the office to pass a message along. They told me, and I quote "the ranch seems to have things under control." SURE, the ranch might, but I don't even know what going on with my horse! I keep getting mixed messages from the barn manager, especially regarding Ace's recovery. That's kind of scary, right? Plus the farriers do their own thing, without consulting my vet OR myself, and that pisses me off.
3. It's more political out there than the presidential election out there. We've apparently befriended the "wrong" people, and now life has become a living hell. I was yelled at for tying in the "wash racks" and told that my stuff was all over the barn. Well, no it's not, and there are about two dozen people who tie in the wash racks. Anyway, our halters were taken off of the tie spots where they were hanging, my grooming bag taken from the corner it was tucked away in, and Emma's shoes were taken from by the step where she sits and changes them, and thrown on the floor of the barn manager's office. Okay, that's disrespecting my crap, and I DON'T LIKE THAT.
There are a million more reasons, but I don't want to whine and complain for too long. I'm also really not happy with Ace's weight. He's a hard keeper, and they refuse to feed him more, even if I pay them extra. It's just ridiculous. I'm tired of it and I want out.
So, we're getting out, to the most awesome situation ever. It's literally 5 minutes from my house, and we will be doing all the feeding ourselves. I can see my horses twice a day!!! We found a paddock to rent with a huge wooden shelter at a barn that's totally non-drama--about five or so retired ladies have their equally retired horses out there (and who are more than happy to feed for us if we go on vacation). We'll have to ride through the neighbor's gate and use their indoor arena, but that's not a bad thing at all. There's a round pen on site, so I can still give lessons to kids without having to drag them or their parents anywhere. They can be on supplements, have blankets (which we weren't allowed to have at the ranch...), and get as much food as they need. I am SO excited that I basically can have my horses back. The ranch was fun while it lasted, but I want my horses near me. I want to call ALL the shots regarding their care and have actual contact with my vet and farrier. I want to be sure they're being taken good care of, since I'll be overseeing everything. They'll finally be home.
I'll be taking pictures of the place ASAP. It's sooo nice I just can't even get over it. At first I had a few misgivings, but as the move comes closer (November 16th!!) I get less anxious and worried and more excited. My two boys also get to be roomies, which they'll adore. They have some kind of SERIOUS bromance going on. The only thing I'm dreading is packing up all of my stuff...
P.S. Yesss I know I've been tagged for Ghost it Forward. I'll do it tomorrow, since it's actually Halloween and all. Also, if you've been reading, comment so I know who you are and I can tag you. I don't know many people on blogger!
Wow, long time no update. Things have been a whirlwind of accomplishments and progress lately, and I couldn't be happier with the way Ace is coming along. I'm getting my driver's license soon, so I can go up as many time as I want (or as much as I can afford, with the gas prices and everything) during the week just to visit, ride, and fool around with my horse.
One thing that we've done lately that I am SO proud of is conquering the trailer. I know he's traveled quite a bit, but the B.N. (barefoot nazi, his old owner) tried to shove him in the trailer and ever since he's been saying uh-uh. He said it took Ace six hours before he finally gave up and jumped in. So, needless to say, I was a little apprehensive when we pulled the trailer out, and so was he. We gave him a little tranq paste--just to help him calm down and make things a pleasant experience--and my mom stood in the trailer with lots of grain and cookies while I put his leg on the lip of the trailer and then rewarded him once he left it there. I did that with both front feet, and then hopped up and helped my mom coax him in. It took about a half hour total, which is quite a reduction from the battle of Ace vs. the B.N. He backed out really quick once he was in, but we put him in again and he stayed in for a bit longer. We'll be pulling the trailer out again possibly next weekend, and I'm excited to see how much better he does this time around.
We've also hit the trails again. I was way, way impressed with him when we went out for the first time in almost six months... birds were flying, people were zooming down the road, and he didn't look twice at anything. It's amazing how much this horse has come around to all of the TLC and attention my family and I have been smothering him with. I think he's really enjoying himself, and knows we may push him out of his comfort zone, but only with lots of encouragement (and cookies!). I never make our rides a taxing ordeal, even when he is uninjured, so I think he's actually starting to enjoy work. We do more muscle-building exercises than anything in the arena, and he's always willing to please. At the walk, he's now able to half-pass, shoulder-in, counter arc, two-track, etc. with his ears forward and his body loose and relaxed. I got him a new bit, a french link D-ring, and he's become really soft in it. He carries himself in a frame now, rather than sticking his nose up in the air and resembling a giraffe.
Trotting is a bit of a different ordeal, as he's at about a 2 on the lameness scale. He's sound in the straight aways, but falters a bit in circles and the corners. He seems to be a little bit better every time I ride, which is a huge relief. Ace is expected to make a full recovery, even with his old fractured sesamoid (x-ray at left). I'm just glad that he'll be perfectly sound as long as we don't do any speed events or jumping, which is okay. The jumping is kind of a bummer, but there are plenty of other things I can do.
Anyway, I think that's about it. I'm going to try and update more often, but you know, time constrictions and all that. I'll have to get up pics of my fab rainbow halter next time...
Things have been going basically the same. I'm riding lots of different horses, plus my own, plus trying to find a second job. Things are crazy. Anyway, I've been tagged by Erin over at Now That's a Trot! to do the whole "six things I'm proud of" meme, so I guess I'm going to do it now.
1. I am proud of how far my horses have come. This doesn't just include the horses I own, but the ones I've worked with. I feel like every time we accomplish anything, we are one step closer to winning the final battle. Though, I think I'm especially proud of each step my own horses take. I first got Captain when he was skinny and wormy, having not been ridden in a whole year. I knew he had all the talent in the world, though no one else seemed to think so. We kept going, though, and accomplished more than I could ever hope for. With Ace, he was just this horse out in pasture, who really didn't know anything besides how to go down the trail. Now he is quiet and calm, and so, so willing to learn.
2. I am proud of all my hard work. Three years ago, I was spoiled rotten, totally taking my horse for granted. I still resent my dad for pulling the plug and refusing to pay for my horse anymore, but without him I would never have learned how to work hard for the things I love and take responsibility. I'm now thinking about getting a second job, to pay for shows and gas and my car insurance. I feel like I have a lot more responsibility than the average 16 year old--I have all of this, and school. I'm a straight A, honors and AP course student, and have remained so despite working 3 days a week and taking care of my horses and other peoples' as well.
3. I am proud of my knowledge. I was reading at 3 (and really doing so), but I saved the Dr. Suess books for bedtime. Instead, I read as many horse books as I could possibly get my hands on. Veterinary encyclopedias became my 'thing' when I was 8, and my parents finally decided to buy me magazine subscriptions instead of $20+ encyclopedias and books. I'd been riding for a little over 5 years at that point, but I still had an unquenchable thirst to know more. I got my first horse at 9, a pregnant mustang mare named Lilly, and I was able to converse with the vet intelligably about her options. I want to keep myself as knowledgable as possible, just because it has been such a useful tool in my riding, showing, and horse owning. Without my knowledge, I don't think I would be anywhere.
4. I am proud to have a natural instinct. I've had people tell me that I have a "way" with horses, though I think that's because of hard work and experience. Some people have told me that I have a sort of instinct, though; I seem to know what's going to happen before it does. I can tell when a horse is going to buck someone off, or spook, or kick out, though sometimes they're obvious things. I know when to move out of the way, even if the horse is quiet, because I just know something is coming. I can look at a horse and know what they are, thinking, too, not in the "telepathic" sense, but by reading their body language and their eyes. I can tell what needs to happen when I'm riding, too. Oftentimes when I was in training, my trainer would call out something to fix only to stop short because I was already doing it. I can feel exactly what the horse is doing while I'm in the saddle, too, and can picture it in my head. I think most of these things are from years of being around horses, but sometimes I feel like I do things that're "right" even when I can't explain it, as if everything about horses has become second nature.
Can I be done now? Pleeease? Just this part has taken me two days to do, LOL.
I might edit it later, but for now I tag Crickett over at The Fluffly Files. Now go have some fun with your horses!
What do you think of when you imagine a western rider? If spurring, yanking, and a general disregard to a horse's movement came to mind, you're mostly right. But is this riding method due to cruelty, or ineducation? Who's riding like this because "trainer said," and who's doing it because they want to?
When I first learned to ride, I got dressage lessons. For over three years I learned to ride without any hands, and it stuck with me. Even when we had to downgrade to western giddy-up lessons and get something less expensive, I really only used my hands to reinforce my whoa or downward transition, and to steer. When you watch people in every discipline in the warm-up ring or at home, about 80% of them have their hands in their face or are stuffing their horse into a frame. I was in training with a very popular Northern California AQHA trainer for a long time as well. She told me that good movement starts from the withers back, and that you can't ride a horse's head and neck. That philosophy has been the basis for my riding techniques since I first heard her say it. Since then I've been successful WITH my western pleasure horses in dressage, jumping (at rated hunter shows), lower-level eventing, western riding, and drill team, among many other things. 
While I don't have the money to show big time APHA or AQHA, we do pretty well at our local shows, and I've been to the Gold N Grand and done well there. I'm sure many others have the same story as I do, as well. When a horse is a true athlete there are no limits on what they can do.
I'm just glad that he'll be perfectly sound as long as we don't do any speed events or jumping, which is okay. The jumping is kind of a bummer, but there are plenty of other things I can do. 
