It has always been a coveted job at our house, and two have held the position before her: Old Red and Penny. Mostly Old Red, though, because he lived to 37 and performed the job until the end.
Tumbleweed was calling for her and pawing at his gate, but Foxy paid no attention to him.
It had been 4 weeks since he was ridden, but he was so calm that it was an easy yes, and up I went.
We were in the round pen for only a few minutes, working on vertical flexion and moving along in a straight path, and he did so well that we decided to head to the arena.
I side passed him to the gate, he opened and closed it like a ranch pro, then to the arena gate, where he did the same. He’s even getting so good at it now that he nudges it perfectly with his nose to get it in position for me, like Cowboy used to do.
In the arena we worked on more of the same—anytime he fell out of frame or got looky I asked for vertical flexion and when he got back to work I gave him back some slack.
The centerpiece of our work was walk, trot, and lope transitions, and she wanted them fast, super fast, almost faster than my brain works. But those exercises resulted in a much more sensitive and responsive session. Tweed started carrying himself better, in anticipation of whatever would come next.
One thing (of the many things) Regina told me which stood out is that a good gauge of whether or not he’s carrying himself properly (besides feeling it in his back, etc) is how long it takes him to organize his body when I ask for vertical flexion again. After the exercises we did, that reorganization was almost instantaneous.
I was so impressed with how mature Tumbleweed was and how hard he worked for me.
When I went to unsaddle him, he ground tied, also like Cowboy did. It was a deja vu kind of day. He kept giving me these snippets of what I’ve felt before and seen before, relaxation, trust, willingness. In a word, I guess it would be partnership, even after so much time off.
All of this work we’re doing is always with trail riding in mind. If I’m asking for vertical flexion when I lose his attention, Regina is saying, “And this is what you do if it happens on the trail.” She’s training me to be proactive and to maintain a close connection to support him. Someday, he will be a seasoned trail horse and not need all that support, but that will take time.
I think country life is the best life for kids. My grandson seems very happy here riding horses, his bike, the 4-wheeler with grandpa, and “walking the dogs.”
I hope what we’ve given him here has made up, just a little bit, for what he lost. He is certainly surrounded with love.
What a great season of life.
Trail riding is so underestimated as far as the public's idea of "just a trail horse". A good trail horse is one of the best horses there is. They might not excel at speed events or cow events, but they darn sure have the most important job of keeping their rider (and themselves) safe. They are some of the best broke horses out there when it's done right. Sounds like you are on the right track to have many rewarding rides on your boy! Love the connection you are getting.
ReplyDeleteAll kids should grow up around horses. Your grandson is lucky to have you.
You are right Shirley. Non-horse people have no idea what being a solid “trail horse” entails. They only know string horses, and that is more like the job Foxy is doing with the Littles. But when you have an independent trail working horse, it has to be almost a part of you. That level of trust and athleticism comes from all of these basics that you find in sport horses.
DeleteTweed is extremely athletic and smart. There is a lot he could do well, but I think trail riding (and ranch riding and ranch work) are the pinnacle.
I agree about horses and kids. Watching Foxy with my grandson brings tears of happiness. She is so gentle with him and he, in turn, has to learn to respect her and be calm, observant, and brave.