Dante is Dante

Cole, Starry and even Bella have become consistent on the trail.  Starry was easy--we just had to get used to him wanting to lead.  (What is with that?)  Cole was doing good, but he had a bad ride last week that was right out of the blue.  I'm glad to say it was a one time thing, and he is back to normal.  Bella came around with what Ellen and I call a "5-day blitz."  Shari rode her 5 days in a row, and in the end she was back to her old self.

That left us with Dante.  Due to her nervousness, Ellen had been waiting for the weather to be decent and the river to be on the low side for his first day out.  Those days were few and far between.  This year, spring was extremely elusive.  We had snow just last week!

The forecast is improving, and in a few days, there is supposed to be a perfect day.  She picked out the day for her maiden voyage of the year.  Ellen and I were taking Ranger on his morning constitutional; talking about it.  She told me she almost wanted to do it today since the river was so low, but it was just too cold.  (The temps were in the 30s, and it was cloudy.)  I really didn't blame her.  Most horses are friskier on colder days--making it harder for the first ride out.  She seemed so disappointed, so I told her I would ride him if she liked and she could ride Cole.

She brightened up; immediately.  The plan was on.   We turned Dante out to play in the outdoor arena and let him run some bucks out.  Of course, he had to roll.  I told Ellen she could brush Dante, and I would get Cole ready.

She assured me that she wouldn't want to switch horses during the ride, so that meant I could use my favorite saddle which doesn't fit Cole because he is just too little--the WWII Japanese Military saddle.  I used it exclusively on Mingo, and when he died I used it on Cruiser.  The only thing I don't like about Cole is that he can't wear this saddle.  Ellen wasn't too thrilled about me using it.  It has no knee support at all, and it is easy to come off of.  I assured her I would be fine.

Kevin came out, and we suggested that he ride Starry out ahead of us and meet us at the turnaround point.  Then he could go home with us.  For the first ride, we didn't want Starry to complicate things.

Here is a list of our concerns about the ride.
1. Dante would be nervous around cars.
2. Dante would misbehave going through the giant mud pit that wasn't there last year.
3. Dante wouldn't want to go down the river bank.
4. Dante wouldn't like the mud leading to the river's edge.
5. Dante would refuse to cross the river by doing his slow spin routine--he does that every year.
6. Dante would go into the river, but spook if he did his business while crossing because he gets splashed.
7. Dante would spook near the fence from traffic because it is right by the road--and he does that every year on the first ride.
8. Dante would be hyper and not listen.

Yes, it is a rather long list, but at least he doesn't have Cole bursts--which are when Cole leaps into the air and tries to run down the trail--just because he feels good.  (Why did Ellen really want to ride Cole?)

I led Dante down the street and a couple cars passed us.  He handled them like a champ.  When we got to the start of the trail, he did get nervous when he was in close proximity to Cole, which was no surprise.  This is always a big problem in the spring which improves over time.  No big deal.

As we headed down the trail, Cole took the lead and was walking very, very fast.  Could it be that he knew Starry was ahead?  Dante walked very, very fast behind him.  That was far from normal.  He generally walks extremely slow, and I have to stop and wait for them to catch up.

We went through the bad mud pit as if he did it every day.  When we got to the bottom of the hill, he marched right down the bank, into the mud, swerved off our path a little to where the mud was deeper, started sinking--and froze!  I didn't know what to do!  I wanted to keep momentum up so I could get him to the edge of the river without the slow spin.  Then I realized what was happening.  He was doing his business before entering into the water--as we were training him to do it, last year.  He got a peppermint.  Another problem was checked off the list.

He then went right to the edge of the river with no refusing.  As soon as he got a step into the water, I clicked and treated him.  Then, he marched right across!  No slow spin!  What an awesome horse!

He wanted to trot along the fence like we usually do.  I wanted to walk the first time, and he listened.  A few cars went by, and he didn't flinch.  I was bragging about it to Ellen, and she reminded me that his  yearly spook happens on the way home.

We spent the first part of the time walking.  The trail was recently washed out from the big storm, and it is quite the mess.  Dante was looking at all the changes; as expected.  He is an very observant horse.  He was also tossing his head a bit, but he does that.

When we got to a good section of trail, I put Dante in the lead to do some trotting.  Dante has a much slower trot than Cole, and I didn't want him to get hyped up if Cole got too far away.  I braced myself for the Lambert Leap--something he nearly always does on his trot transitions on the trail.  It was a big one--and then he settled right into his slow, smooth and beautiful trot.  I could ride it all day.

Cole didn't like it, though.  Ellen was having trouble regulating him.  He was trying to charge up and pass.  It just wasn't working.  We returned to a walk.  I got what I wanted--to see if Dante would do a safe trot--and he was marvelous.

We walked on until we met Kevin on Starry at the next river crossing.  We turned around and headed home at a walk.  The big question was--will the bromance between Starry and Dante continue?  Remember, Starry has had trouble leading when Dante was there to follow.  Lately, he had been very willing to lead with Cole.

Then we realized the truth.  Starry isn't fixated on Dante--he is fixated on Ellen!!!  He willingly passed Dante so he could follow Cole, but he didn't want to pass Cole.  If I am riding Cole, he doesn't care.  It is all about Ellen.  (And Bella, if she is there.)

The trip home was uneventful, except that we all got cold.  Dante was fine along the fence and didn't give us his yearly spook.  The only unexpected thing; which was expected was when Starry started to act out and scared Dante.  Dante spun and tried to run away from him.  Starry has the same effect on Cole, so I was used to the sudden spin.  Only thing was that Cole spins left most of the time, and Dante spun to the right.

Cole was much better with Ellen than he has been on her last few rides with him.  She enjoyed him, thoroughly.

The whole ride went so well.  Dante didn't do a thing that was on our list.  Even with the cold weather on his first trail ride of the season, he acted like it was in the middle of the summer.  The only out of the ordinary thing he did was walk faster--and we wish he would do that all the time.  What a wonderful horse.

I am happy to say, Dante is Dante.

Try Something New

Chances are, you have read about me clicking and treating for a behavior.  Those of you that have tried clicker training will nod in agreement.  Those of you that haven't tried it probably roll your eyes and think, "Not again."

I say, try something new.  Give clicker training a try.  It is fun, and it does no harm.

Clicker training has proved successful in all other species, so why not horses?  When I was at the Cleveland Zoo, I watched them move the elephants from one pen to the other with the handlers on the outside of the fence.  They told the elephants where to go, and when they did, they marked the behaviour and gave them a treat.  They didn't lure the elephants the way we often (and sometimes unsuccessfully) try to get horses to load in a trailer.  Instead, they ask for a behavior and them gave a treat.  (The click is merely a message that tells an animal that they got it right and a treat is coming.  It is an accurate way to communicate--where just handing a treat is not.  The timing may be off--causing confusion.)

I first started clicker training when I saw the great success that my sister had with her dog.  I decided to try it with my cat and Mingo, my horse.  Starting with a cat is a great way to begin.  Since most cats don't have much training, you are working with a blank slate.  The only good way to train a cat is with positive reinforcement, period.  If you have a cat, I'd advise you to get a clicker and a bag of cat treats--and have some fun.

Dogs seem to be naturals for clicker training, and it is the only way I seem to be able to teach my slow-witted Maggie.  I don't think I could have lived with her without being able clicker training.  She still isn't a very good dog, but she is a better one.

Back to horses.  I started with Mingo because Cruiser was insulin resistant and couldn't have treats.  After initiation--which only took a few short lessons, Mingo got it.  I started to use it while riding, and I could see it working.  Unfortunately, after a few lessons, he got sick with a mysterious illness.  That is when I discovered the true value of clicker training.  The illness caused many things, including an abscess in his hoof which caused his leg to swell up and become very sore.  I couldn't touch his leg to try to soak his hoof.  With clicker training as a tool, I got him to lift his leg up--without me touching it--so I could put a soaking boot on his hoof.  A week later, the farrier was able to trim the foot with ease--even though Mingo still didn't want anyone to touch that leg.  Clicker training helped him overcome the pain and cooperate with me, instead.  I was sold on it.

Poor Mingo didn't survive the illness, and that is when Cole came into my life.  He was unridden when I bought him, and I decided to train him primarily with clicker training--and it worked like a charm.

But, you don't have to go that route.  If you have a horse that is already trained like Mingo, you can just do some clicking for fun.  Is there a trick you want to teach?  Clicker training is the best way to go.  Tricks should be fun.  I taught Cole to park out, bow and do a silly walk.  He learned to chase a ball, but I never could get him to pick it up and return it.  When I first started riding him, I taught him to pick up a mitten if I was in the saddle and threw it on the ground.  I haven't done it in years, but a few weeks ago, I had to take my mitten off when I was riding and accidentally dropped it.  Wouldn't you know, he remembered and picked it up for me! He got clicked, of course.

Even better, you can use clicker training to help you along if you have a problem area that conventional training doesn't seem to be working well enough.  Just break the task down into little pieces.  Do you have a horse that just doesn't seem to get backing up?  Start by clicking for a shift in weight.  When that works, wait until you get a backwards step--no matter how tiny it may be.  When your horse understands that really well--go for the second step, etc...

When your horse backs well, you can fade off the clicking--or add going forward after backing.  This winter, I worked with Cole to back up--and then trot forward.  He thought it was fun--because he got clicked.

If you only use clicker training to help with one task or trick--that is great!  Even better, you may see how useful it can be and use it for other things.  You don't have to convert your horse to a complete clicker trained horse, like Cole, but you just might.  It is fun for the trainers, too.

"Trail Training for the Horse and Rider"

My book, "Trail Training for the Horse and Rider" is officially out of print! I got the last 2 cartons from the publisher, so you can still buy it new from me. If you are interested in buying my book, let me know. It is $19.95 plus shipping. We could work out those details when I find out how you would like me to ship it.

Third Time is a Charm?

Third Time is a Charm?

Bella, the beautiful, high-energy National Show Horse, had a bad spooking incident with Shari a few weeks ago.  They parted ways and both of them got hurt enough that they took a few weeks off from trail riding.  We weren't there when it happened.  In fact, I haven't ridden with them all year.  Circumstances and the weather just didn't cooperate.

That changed Easter weekend.  Shari and I had our first ride of the year on Saturday.  The river was too high to cross, so we were stuck on the hill--but that actually can be helpful on the first ride, because we can work on demoralization.

Demoralization is what we call doing the hill multiple times.  If they are in a hurry to get home--we just do the hill, again.

For our first ride together, we decided that staying at a walk was the best choice.  Generally, I feel that we shouldn't trot until they walk well and shouldn't canter until they trot well. 

Walking well was a challenge.  We spent much time standing until she relaxed.  We then would walk some more.  Gradually, she settled down and listened to Shari.  After 4 trips on the hill, things seemed hopeful.

Our next ride was the next day, Easter Sunday.  We thought we would be stuck on the hill, again, but the river surprised us.  We were able to cross!!!

We knew we would only be walking, but it was a pretty morning for a walk in the park.  Bella didn't have a crazy look on her face.  She walked fast and insisted on being in the lead.  She did try rushing towards home, but Shari was always able to talk her down.  Though she showed some nervousness, there was improvement from the day before.  Things were looking up.  We figured one more day of consecutive riding would be all she needed.

The following evening, Shari and I met for a ride.  The river was now in great shape for crossing.  Kevin and Starry were already out on their ride.  As we went down the hill, we could see them on the other side of the river; coming home.  Cole crossed first, and I was talking to Kevin as Bella crossed.  I wasn't watching, but apparently she turned into a crazy horse--trying to run across the river.  She charged up the bank.  Maybe it was because she saw Starry, but she isn't near as attached to him and Starry is to her.  She passed him up with barely a glance.  She wanted to go!

Starry went home, and we went on our ride.  We trotted short stretches--each time going a little longer.  The trotting went fairly well.  Bella wanted to go fast, but Shari kept her at a moderate speed.  Though Bella was a bit spooky and nervous, she wasn't that bad.  Our problems showed up on the way home.  She was rushing and anxious to get back.  All she wanted to do was trot.  Shari was constantly correcting her.  And then the spooking!  Everything bothered her.  She spooked at a falling leaf--that was the kind of mood she was in.  Poor Shari.  It was an exhausting ride for her.  The third ride wasn't a charm.  It was the worst ride of the three. 

Cole, on the other hand, just walked along behind her--just as he had the whole weekend.  He didn't bat an eye at any of Bella's antics.  He seems to know that he has to stay quiet and give her space.  It's a good thing, too.  We don't need him to add fuel to Bella's fire.  I don't know if he helps quiet her down, any, but he doesn't make anything worse.

We made it up the hill and dismounted with a sigh of relief.  The early rides of spring can be tough, and we just had one of those rides.  The good news is that they get better.  Bella was a good horse, before, and she will be a good horse, again.

Continuing Rides

Continuing Rides

As Ellen waits for the best time to start taking Dante on the trail, and as Bella is recovering from a leg injury, that only leaves me Starry to ride with.  The mornings have been bitterly cold through most of the month of March.  On those days, Kevin and I have been riding the loop behind the barn.  We have had mixed results with that.  Some days, the horses are just perfect--and the ride would be boring except for the good company.  Other days can be very challenging--like the day that Starry saw the tarp flapping in the wind...

Kevin and I have continued riding on the trail in the evenings.  Each ride, the horses seem a little better.  Starry has a new routine.  Remember how he never wanted to take the lead?  Well. there are still times that he doesn't want to, but all Kevin has to do is ask him to go forward, and  he does.  Here is the funny thing.  If he gets close to Cole at a walk, he wants to pass him!  We let him pass, but he walks so slow that Cole soon passes him.  We walk along, and when we get too far ahead, we stop and let him catch up.  If we let him get too close--he will speed pass Cole, again.

We are still trotting with only Starry in the lead.  He sets a slower and more sensible speed.  Cole is willing to follow.  When Cole is in the lead, he tends to go pretty fast.  In the summer, it doesn't matter.  Starry goes at his speed and doesn't care if Cole gets too far ahead.  That doesn't happen this time of year.  Starry gets very upset, and he will throw a tantrum and try to take off to catch up.  Not good.  Fortunately, we have an easy solution.  It is great that Starry is willing to lead, now.

We did try putting Cole in the lead once at a trot--and Starry acted as predicted, even though I kept Cole from going very fast. 

We are able to trot a little towards home if the horses aren't "in a mood."  On a few rides, we were able to trot home as much as we would in the summer.

The other night, the river looked low enough to cross the second river crossing.  I went first.  The way that I go has some large rocks under the water, but I just guide Cole through.  He is very manoeuvrable.  As long as I can see the rocks, I am happy.  The river was still a little high. 

Kevin has a different route.  He goes a little upstream where there is no rocks, but it is much deeper.  Cole is such a tiny horse compared to Starry.  I don't like taking him in water any deeper than necessary.  I was halfway across the river when Kevin realized that his way was much deeper than he wanted to go through.  He yelled over to me to turn around.  I wasn't in a good place to do that, so I kept going straight across.  The water was deeper than I liked, but Cole managed it like a champ.

I called over to Kevin, who was standing on the other side, to cross on the ford so we could continue our ride.  Wouldn't you know, that Starry wouldn't budge one bit.  Kevin tried, but gave up.  I didn't want to bring Cole back through the river, so I came back over the ford.  Starry was happy that Cole was back.  Cole thought he got away with something, somehow, so everyone was happy except Kevin.  Even he wasn't that upset.  He seemed to think it was more funny than anything else.  We think that Starry didn't understand that if he crossed the ford--he wouldn't be leaving Cole but going to him.

Over all, Starry is settling down faster than Cole, but that is to be expected.  Starry is just a quieter horse, by nature.  Our goal is to have 2 quiet horses to ride with Ellen and Dante.  She doesn't need our horses misbehaving when she is trying to settle Dante down.  We are getting very close to that time.  If only the weather would cooperate.

Early March Rides

Kevin and I have been getting across the river and having some decent trail rides after a fairly long hiatus.  That means, starting all over.  I could see why Ellen only wants to do this once each spring. 

The first ride was the toughest.  I went by myself, and Cole was so excited!  Early in the ride, I tried some short stretches of trotting to see if he would settle down--plus, it would keep me warm.  It didn't work.  Each time, he got more excited.  I decided we would just walk.  I had one Cole burst near the beginning of the ride and 2 more towards the end of the ride.  All of them were near the fence that parallels the street.  we often trot there, so I think he was just showing his enthusiasm.

It wasn't bad for our first solo ride in who knows when.

Since then, I have had Kevin and Starry join us.  Our first ride together felt like we were both riding sticks of TNT--with the fuses lit!  We both agree that it would be best just to walk.  Cole walks so much faster than Starry when he is hyper.  I kept having to stop and let Starry catch up.  Then, Starry would want to pass up Cole.  I would let him, but that would last for about 20 seconds and then Cole would pass up Starry and walk quickly ahead.  We just kept repeating it over and over.  I did have one Cole burst.

The next chance we got to cross the river went a little better.  We were able to tort the sections of the trail where I don't typically canter.  Once we got to those places, Cole really wanted to fly, so we kept it at a walk.  Surprisingly, we were able to trot a little bit on the way home.  I think it is because I don't canter Cole on the way home, so he was content to trot.  We only did short stretches. 

At one point, we were walking and Starry was in the lead.  Suddenly, he leaped up into the air and tried to charge forward.  Cole decided it was a great idea and immediately joined him.  We stopped them both with ease.  Starry was probably spooked, but we don't know what from.

The rest of the ride went smoothly, but it sure was chilly.

Our following ride was a big improvement.  We were able to trot in most places that we usually trot on the way out.  Starry was quite calm.  Cole would get fractious, and we would stop.  Kevin and I have a system.  When Cole is good, I praise him profusely--and loud enough for Kevin to hear.  Kevin just listens to my dialog with Cole and knows when to stop.  When there was a loud airplane overhead, he purposely held off trotting because he wanted to hear us.

We were able to trot a little more on the way home--but we definitely walked at the fence.  Kevin didn't even trust Starry there.  Since we did more trotting and there was a little sunshine, were didn't get as cold.  That has been a problem.  The temps just can't seem to get out of the mid thirties.  Colder weather means silly horses.  Silly horse means more walking--and then we freeze because it is so cold.

Maybe Ellen has the right idea?

Sigh...when will spring arrive?

A Muddy Situation

A Muddy Situation

As I have mentioned before, the park tried to fix our rocky, washed out hill trail by dumping a bunch of clay on it--filling in the drainage ditch.  Now, it is a terribly muddy mess where they tried to fix it.  Cole hates mud.

We have been waiting for the river to go down, and it has been a long wait.  There has been so much rain.  Sometimes, if it isn't raining, we ride on the loop behind the barn, and sometimes we try to navigate the mud on the hill.

One day, Kevin and I were riding Starry and Cole up the hill to go home.  They were very excited, and we could feel it.  The worst muddy section just happens to be the the single spot in the entire park where Cole is likely to have a Cole burst.  It is a short, steep part of the hill that is preceeded by corner.  I call it Cole Burst Corner.

As we approached that area, we could feel both horses building up in excitement.  I felt like I was riding a coiled spring, so I hopped off.  I would prefer getting my feet soaked to rocketing up a hill and through the mud.  As I dismounted, I saw Kevin doing the same thing.  Starry was just as excited as Cole.

Well, you couldn't imagine how bad they were.  Both were trying to charge through the mud.  As Cole was circling around me on the muddy incline, I saw Starry nearly push Kevin over in the mud.  Somehow, we made it to the top to the dryer trail.

Seems we had a problem.

The rain kept coming for the next few days; making things all the worse.  When we could, we rode on the loop.

Finally, we had a dry evening.  We were on the loop, but Starry was being Starry.  He didn't want to lead, but he didn't want Cole in the lead.  Sigh...  Kevin suggested riding down the street, down the trail and turning around when we got to the muddy part.  Sounded like a plan.

When we got to the top of the hill to take a look at the mud, Cole spun 180 degrees towards home.  Yes, I had a problem.  Cole's hatred of mud made him refuse to go through it before I even asked.  Kevin suggested we go down the hill, since we were there.  After Cole's display, I wanted to show him that he can't  refuse to go through the mud just because he doesn't like it.

We headed down the hill.  Cole did go, reluctantly--then very quickly--to the bottom of the first little slope where it is dryer.  I praised  him on the way down and clicked him at the bottom.  Starry walked down slow and careful.  We then picked our way through the swamp where the ditch was filled in.  The rest of the way down the hill was uneventful.  We rode back and forth a few times at the bottom.  When they seemed settled down, we decided to go home.

We had a plan.  When we reached the mud, we would do "stop and click" over and over.  That would do 2 things.  It would keep them from getting too much speed and reward them for not getting too much speed. 

They were excited, of course.  They wanted to get home and through the mud as quick as they could.  Starry was in the lead.  Cole thought he went to slow and wanted to pass.  We asked for a "whoa," and I barely got one--yet it was one, so I clicked and treated.  Kevin did, too.  We were working as a team.  We did a few more steps and repeated.  We got through the first stretch of mud.  Cole still wasn't stopping well, but he was stopping.  Starry was doing a little better than Cole.

And now, it was time for Cole Burst Corner.  Remember, he will try to charge up here even on dry days if he is in an energetic mood--and he certainly was on this day.  We stopped and clicked at the bottom of the slope.  Then we took 3 steps and did it again.  It was keeping them under control.  About halfway up, I felt a difference in Cole. He had relaxed.  His head was at his normal height, and he was no longer taking those short, fast steps.  He understood!  We continued in this pattern until we got to the top.  We arrived with great success!!!

On our next scheduled ride, Kevin got to the barn before me and was already on the hill.  I hurried and saddled to get out there to join him.  Cole was very hyper.  We managed the mud quite well, but that was no surprise.  It wasn't going away from home that was the problem. 

Halfway down the hill, he was able to see Starry at the bottom of the hill.  Cole started to bounce and try to trot.  Kevin saw us and waited for us to catch up.  We walked back and forth at the bottom a few times and then started to do some trotting back and forth, too.  Then, we walked up the hill to the muddy section, turned around and went back down the hill.  Cole was still very excited.  Starry was slow and careful.

After more back and forth at the bottom, it was time to go home.

The first thing I noticed was that Cole was more sensible in the muddy section by the ditch.  He wasn't what I would call good, but he was going where I directed him and stopping more willingly.

When we got to Cole Burst Corner, I really noticed the change.  After about 2 halts, Cole just walked like an ordinary horse.  We continued with our multiple stop/clicks, but it was no longer an "event."  The horses were significantly better, and it was only their second lesson.

Kevin and I plan to continue this training method to instill good behavior.  We will gradually reduce the number of stops and replace them with praise. 

The way I see it, we could suffer with the problem all spring--or take the time to fix it.  I'm glad to say it is already taking less time than I thought it would. 

I sure hope they will fix the hill this spring...

A Rambunctious Ride

A Rambunctious Ride

The other day, the driveway at the barn was a sheet of ice.  Since I haven't taught Cole to ice skate, yet, I decided to ride him in the indoor arena.  I have been avoiding it as much as I can by riding out on the loop in the back of the property or down to the river, so it was more than a week since we had been in it.

Christie was riding her Paint, and I thought that might provide me with an interesting challenge.  Except for Dante, I have barely ridden with any other horses in the arena all winter.  Cole needed some exposure to other horses.

The ride started out well, for the first 30 seconds.  Christie rode past us at a trot, and Cole leaped up in the air and tried to chase after them.  I spun him and proceeded down the wall.  That was just the beginning.  Just a minute later, Kevin did something in the barn that made a loud noise.  Cole decided it was time to run from the noise and leaped up in the air.  I spun him, again.  Do you see the pattern?

I told Christie I would stay on one side of the arena and ride him in a circle until he settled down.  I started at a walk and then added some short stretches of trotting.  He managed at least 3 more surges.  I had to yell over to Kevin to stop making so much noise.  Cole isn't a spooky horse--he was just in a spooky mood.  Poor Christie.  I bet she was happy I came out.  I was looking for a more challenging ride, and I got it.

I started to feel Cole settle down and become more focused on me instead of the other horse.  Hooray!  I was hoping to get my full ride in before Christie's other horse came out with the trainer--the one she only had a week--but no such luck.  The trainer led out the other horse.  She is a big, black Quarter Horse mare.  I thought, at first, that he was going to lounge her, but here it turned out that he wanted her to spend time with another horse in the arena.  That was exactly what I wanted to do with the other horse.  It looked like Cole was going to get a much longer lesson on being ridden with other horses in the arena.

I carefully walked and trotted about.  I didn't want Cole to disrupt things.  He was being good, I'm glad to say.

The trainer didn't know what the mare would do, since he had never had her in the arena with another horse.  I was so relieved Cole was behaving much better than before.  He walked the mare around and practiced standing.  At one point, Cole surged forward.  I sighed and spun him, again, to get him under control.  I glanced over at the mare to see her dancing around.  This time, Cole was just reacting to the other horse instead of causing the problems himself.

A little bit later, Cole was at it, again.  I got him under control quite quickly--in time to see the mare rearing way up into the air--twice.  The trainer was so happy that he decided to try this lesson with him on the ground where he was safer instead of in the saddle.

Our ride was over, and I brought Cole back to our barn.  I told the trainer I would close the door.  First, I had to get Cole to his stall.  When I got back to the door, I saw Christie running towards me.  She was trying to get to the door before her mare, who had escaped from the trainer, reached our barn.  I got the door closed before either one got to it.  The trainer later explained that the mare watched me open the door, lead Cole through and then took off for the door--pulling free from him.

It was a challenging session for both of us this time!  Maybe I will ride Dante with them, next time instead of Cole.  As long as he wasn't anywhere near them, he would be a gentleman, I'm sure.  He may even set a good example for the mare.

(If she was close to him, though, he would be terrified.)

Fun, Solo Ride

Fun, Solo Ride

The next day, I had the opportunity to go on a trail ride by myself.  Ellen would hike with us, so I guess that, technically, I wasn't alone, but there were no other horses.  It was a chilly morning, but the river was crossable, so I had to get out.  It had been raining, and more was on the way, but I get so few days in January where I can cross the river--it was worth taking a chance on rain.

I rode down the hill by myself.  Ellen drove down and waited for us on the other side of the river.  We have done this so much over the years that when Cole saw someone standing on the other side of the river, he knew just who it was.  His head went up, his ears went forward and he marched right across the river--never taking his eyes off her.  Ellen is a Cole magnet.  She gave him a peppermint when he got to her.

Then came the hard part; convincing Cole to leave Ellen.  She had to jog next to us before Cole would trot.  Once he was moving, in his enthusiasm, he forgot all about her.

We trotted happily along.  It felt so good to be on the trail and trotting!  At first, he behaved beautifully.  Not surprisingly, when I reached the part of the trail where I often canter, his trot got faster and more powerful.  To prevent a Cole burst, I brought him to a walk and restarted.  I had to do this a few times.  He was still fast, but he was with me.

Once we got to the section of the trail that I am guilty of not just cantering, but galloping, I decided it would be best to walk for a while.  He walked very fast.  After passing the "trigger spot" by about a hundred feet, I gathered the reins and asked him to trot.

He launched into a powerful trot--trying to pull the reins out of my hands.  I talked to him and he started to listen.  Once again, he came back to me.  We didn't go that far.  I thought I would check the brakes.  They weren't too good.  Cole typically stops immediately, but it took more more than 5 seconds.  He did stop, though.  I clicked him and then decided it would be in our best interest just to walk.

We quickly walked to the next river crossing, turned and headed home.  He tried to trot a couple of times, but I told him that wasn't a good idea.  We walked really, really fast.  Soon we met Ellen, and she walked with us.  My horses have always loved to walk with Ellen on our trail rides.

When we got back to the river, Cole didn't want to go down the bank without Ellen.  Of course, she was not going to cross!  She had to walk a few steps down the bank to get him started, and then he was on his own.

We crossed the river, and it started to rain.  Cole hates rain more than he hates mud.  Going up the muddy hill in the rain right before his lunchtime should have been quite a challenge, but I just talked him through it with a lot of "good boys."  He went up the hill at a fast walk, but didn't try any of his shenanigans.  I was very proud of him.

It rained the rest of the day, and the next day the river was too high to cross.  I'm so glad I was able to squeeze in a little trail ride.

Brenda's First Trail Ride after the Accident

Brenda's First Trail Ride after the Accident

Remember Brenda?  She was the woman who went flying when her horse Archie bucked her off.  She ended up with a concussion and a lot of residual pain.

The other day, the weather was warm an the river was crosssable--something very rare in northeast Ohio in January.  Kevin, Brenda and I decided to go on a trail ride.

Brenda had been riding a little bit in the indoor arena the last few weeks, and just a few days previous, she joined us on the loop.  She has healed up enough and Archie has been behaving, so she thought it was time.

We decided that we would keep the ride at a walk for her sake.  It was a good idea for our sake, too.  After all, Starry and Cole hadn't been across the river since before Christmas.  They would be so excited that it would be best to contain them a little bit.

Cole was a little hesitant to step into the water, but with some gentle coaxing, he decided to try it.  I clicked him for his cooperation.  The other two followed him right in.  Once we got across, Starry didn't want to lead--which was usual.  Cole wasn't thrilled with the idea, and he walked very slowly for the first couple minutes.  The made it easy for the other two who are very slow walkers.

Once we got past the fence, Cole decided it was fun to be back on the trail, and he went into his speed walk.  He suggested trotting a few timers, but I told him he had to stay at a walk.  I felt like I was on a stick of dynamite.

Starry and Archie still walked slow, so we kept having to stop and wait for them to catch up.

We were almost to the second river crossing--our goal--when Archie started prancing and dancing--not bad, but persistent.  Suddenly, another horse was trotting behind us with no warning.  Archie didn't settle down, and the woman just trotted right past us, saying hello.  That really irked me.

First, she didn't give us any warning that she was approaching.  That is bad enough.  Then, once Archie started to react, she still didn't give us warning or stop trotting, either.  She should have done both out of politeness, but once Archie started to dance, she should have done both out of safety.  She didn't, and trotted right past us--when she should have asked to pass--and passed at a walk, even if our horses were as calm as could be; let alone nervous like Archie was.

She didn't know that this was the first time out for Archie and Brenda since a bad accident, but she should have been polite out of the sake of courtesy and safety.  Everybody should.  You never know when you are passing a horse in a situation like Archie.

Once she got ahead of us, we decided we didn't want to follow her at all.  We turned toward home right away.

Everything changes when you ride towards home.  Cole continued to walk fast and asked several more times if he could trot.  Starry barged into the lead--several times.  Archie started to prance and jog.  They all wanted to go home and had plenty of energy left.

Our main goal was to keep Archie calm.  We didn't let him get very far behind us.  I kept checking for that other rider, because I was sure she would be passing us up on her way home.  Archie didn't want to settle down, at all.

About 10 minutes down the trail, I saw the other rider.  She was trotting our way.  We found a spot of the trail that was wider and placed Starry and Archie on the edge.  I turned Cole in the middle of the trail next to them to make it so that the rider should have to slow her horse down.  Cole stood there, defiant.  As she got closer, we told her to walk past us because Archie was nervous, and she did.  All three of our horses stood quietly as she passed us--and then she trotted off.  Until she was out of sight, our horses wanted to catch up with them, but we were able to keep them walking.

Archie continued to dance about--then Brenda loosened the reins and he settled down.  He may have been doing the dancing because the reins were too tight.

We crossed the river and headed home.  Cole was following the two slow Quarter Horses, and he was not liking it.  I kept asking him to stop to let them get ahead of us.  Then we would walk until we got too close and then stop again.  I could feel his energy building up.

We reached the last incline of the hill.  If there is anywhere in the entire park that Cole will misbehave, it is on that slope.  Starry can be pretty bad there, too.  In the past, I would just lead him up, but the mud was horrendous that I really didn't want to dismount.  Horrendous mud makes Cole want to rush all the more.  Cole passed everyone up.  I stopped him at the bottom to slow his momentum.  It didn't help.  Halfway up the short, steep slope, he lunged up with huge trot strides.  I struggled to contain him and glanced behind me.  There was Archie cantering up behind us!  That is how the big buck happened--it was Archie cantering to keep up with us.

Starry wanted to get out of the mud as quick as possible, too, and he was right behind us.  I told Kevin that Brenda was having problems, and we were able to immediately stop our horses at the top of the slope to diffuse the situation.  Whew, that was scary.

We made it back to the barn with no complications after that.  Kevin and I had one big sigh of relief.