Epona in Saddle

Epona: patron goddess of mares and foals

Pona: to heal, to recover. To survive.

Day 3 at training, and Epona has learned to pack a saddle. I commented that she looks bigger with the saddle, and her trainer said that she is also "the best girl."

It's nice to know that the sweetness and strength we saw here has carried with her to training. 

I've also witnessed an incredible confidence in her feet, or sure-footedness, and I'm eager to see if that also translates into the formal training. She's the kind of horse who just slides through mud and ice and stays on all fours like it's nothing. Mud puddles, standing water--meh. She hasn't shown any fear.

I had worried about not having separated her from her mother these last few years, and if that would make her more buddy/barn sour. Oddly, it has seemed to have done the opposite. Her mom didn't miss her, and she doesn't appear to be missing home.

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I follow several trainers on FB, and it's always interesting to see what they're doing with the horses. (One of the things I love about ours is that she has always kept us in the loop and even encouraged us to participate in the training. Not all do that.) Anyway, I was reading the bio of this other very good trainer, and it mentioned a few things that she specializes at:

1. Getting to the feet

2. Mental soundness

3. Lateral Work

4. Centered Balance

Those are all the things I, too, am working on with Tumbleweed.

I realized, after the despooking clinic, that I need to spend more time on 1 and 2, while still working on 3 and 4. 

I will be focusing on MORE forward, and MORE straight, with MORE togetherness (which seems to help him), over new obstacles. By togetherness I mean, more ground work at my side, where I can see him with my peripheral vision, and less driving work over obstacles. (That's the advice I received from the horse trainer at the clinic, and I think it was wise.)

I will also focus on being, as he said, less greedy, and really trying to learn when is the best time to stop and take the win.

It's funny to think that Epona and Tumbleweed, if all goes well, will be on the trail together someday. That will be a dream come true. I'm looking forward to adding her into the training and riding around here when she gets home.