Update on Trifecta

Update on Trifecta

I thought when I got Trifecta, it would inspire me to write all about his adventures.  The truth is, there haven't been many adventures.  He has been a pretty easy horse to train.  I'm in no hurry, so I do everything slow and for short durations--and before I know it, he is doing it well.

That is how it went with lounging.  It took a bit before he fully grasped the concept--maybe a week.  We would just walk around and I would move into the lounging position and encourage him to keep walking.  When he did, I stopped him, petted him and told him how wonderful he was.  Soon, I was lounging him at a walk with a long lead rope from both sides.  He volunteered trotting one day, so we did.  Each training session, I would work on it for a few minutes.  At first, he would only trot a few steps, then a half a circle, then a full circle--and now he does multiple circles.  

His leading had improved.  For a while, he didn't want to turn to the right because then he would be stepping away from me.  I worked on it a little during each lesson, and now he does it beautifully.  He is going through a "I want to chew the lead rope" phase, and that can get annoying, but they all seem to grow out of that.  

When I take him on the trail and go down to the river, he gets very excited and walks quite fast.  That is a problem on the steep parts of the hill because he gets so much momentum that I can't keep up with him.  That is something we will have to work on.  Cole and Cruiser both had that problem, and we fixed it by practicing it over and over until they learned how to control their feet--or maybe they didn't feel like there was any reason to rush down if we are just going to turn around and go back up.  That lesson is planned for next week.

The very hardest thing to teach him--and we are still working on it--is for him to stand as I move away from him.  He wants to be with people all the time, and he doesn't want us to leave him.  It isn't just me.  Whoever he sees, he wants to be with.  He is the worst with Kevin.  He simply loves Kevin.  If I am trying to lounge Tri and he sees Kevin--he tries to get to him.  It's not that Kevin is giving him treats--he hasn't been at all.  Tri just wants Kevin to pet him.

Trifecta loves pets.  I haven't been using clicker training with him except for applying bug spray.  I seem to be doing just as well with praise and pets as I would with clicks and treats.  

He is growing.  According to the weight tape, he has put on at least 50 pounds and he is looking more like a small horse than a baby.  He does look like he might be a bit taller, but that is really hard to confirm with the weight tape.  The biggest surprise is how dark his winter coat is coming in.  When I got him, he was a very light chestnut--in just the last few weeks, he is so much darker--which looks really cool with his flaxen mane.  

So overall, things are going well--but just like all my wonderful trail rides with Cole--they are great to experience, but they don't leave me with much to write about.