Training Day

Let’s see. Monday was supposed to be Whisper’s first training session. Unfortunately his trainer got hung up trying to find transport for an 18.2 hand warmblood. Seems he is too long to fit in most trailers. She did get it resolved and we rescheduled for Wednesday. So, we just did a kind of refresher on a lunge line. He did much better at turning. We were able to convince him to go all the way into the wash rack and did his grooming in there. My mother has started doing some of his grooming as I want him to be comfortable with different handlers. So far he’s taking it pretty much in stride although he does insist on being introduced to and checking out new people. He is a character.

Yesterday was a true day off. We fed all the horses, rubbed them a little and headed for Bend for our monthly shopping trip. Note to self: Costco is not the place to shop a couple of days before Thanksgiving.

Finally, this morning Whisper had his first training session. It's amazing how well he did. His turns are now quiet and almost perfect. He no longer takes off at a trot but walks calmly and slows to a walk when cued. He is learning leg yields and sidepassing – I can’t remember what it’s called in the English world – along the rail. He’s not great at those but he has the idea. She is impressed by how quickly he picks things up and said several times he is very smart. I was very impressed by Whisper’s demeanor. Give this horse a task, make sure he understands it, and he proceeds calmly and thoughtfully. He was relaxed and just looked happy. The video below is dramatic for its lack of drama. This was about the middle of the lesson when he was just learning leg yields. Please forgive the poor quality and occasional intrusion of my hand. People who know Whisper will realize how far he has come in a very short time i.e. a few weeks ago he never would have just stood there while his handler talked and gesticulated.



You can tell I am really excited by his progress. Samantha (trainer) was talking about buying him and training him as an event horse – we are going to introduce him to jumping. Now she most likely will not buy him but she sees his potential and feels once he has training it will be no problem to place him with someone who will appreciate him and put him to work. And that’s exactly what I want for him.

Lazy Weekend

Whisper has had a pretty easy weekend. We did a little bit of groundwork yesterday – just enough to see that he’d forgotten nothing and is doing a bit better on his turns. Then we did the grooming /feet cleaning thing and he went back to his pasture while I went to get my mare so we could go riding. She made me feel bad for her. She was trying to be aloof but when she saw I had her halter she actually stuck her nose in it. I saddled her up with the Bob Marshall endurance saddle I am trying out and we joined her buddy Doc and went hill climbing. The saddle is great. I think it’s more comfortable than my western saddle although my first loping experience was less than entertaining. Spice (my mare) enjoys loping down the road and normally I do also. But this was the first time I’d ever used a not-western saddle. Add to that she was behind Doc and it slipped my mind that lately she will not willingly lope behind another horse. So we were off with me bouncing around and yelling at my mother to slow Doc down. All the while Spice is stretching out and giving Doc the old pinned ears stink eye treatment. As soon as we passed him she collected nicely and was a perfect lady. She will be accompanying Whisper to training.

Meanwhile back at the pasture Whisper waited patiently for dinner and treats. He is such a good patient boy.

Today was cold and snowy so we did ‘in the barn’ stuff. With my mother encouraging him from behind I was actually able to get him to walk thru the gate out of his pasture. He has refused to use that gate since the first time he went thru it. I think he banged his hoof or something. Then he walked halfway into the wash rack. He was in far enough to tie so we did his grooming in there. Upon returning to his pasture he walked thru the gate again. I’m really pleased with that as taking a panel down to get him in and out is a pain. All in all he did very well. I am hoping that he is starting to trust that we won’t ask him to do anything that is beyond him. He may not want to do it but he is definitely giving us the benefit of the doubt.

Playday

Today was a day off – sort of. We marched over hill and down dale stopping along the way to sample the bunch grass and see and what was blowing on the wind. It was really really windy. About halfway up the hill I was having doubts about the sanity of this adventure but he handled all the blowing vegetation with great aplomb and he makes a great windbreak. Initially he walked behind me stopping when I stopped and just looking around. I practically had to point out the grass and tell him it was ok to eat it. By the time we reached the road he was telling me where the likely looking delicacies were. He remained a gentleman however and always moved off when I did. It is getting much easier to clean his feet. Today he raised his front feet when I said ‘foot’ and stood still throughout the process. His back feet are almost as good. By the time the farrier is due (about a month) he should have this down.

He definitely has dinner time down. He knows the shelter is where he gets fed and the window is where the treats are delivered. Here he is patiently waiting his turn.

More Groundwork & Flying Feet

11/19/2009
Slow progress. He is responding beautifully to verbal cues to change gaits. Hasn’t quite got whoa down and his direction changes are about the same. Progress shown today would have to be in standing to have his feet cleaned – particularly his back feet. He picks his feet up pretty fast and gives a very small window to catch and hold them. If you miss a couple of times he starts getting peevish and kicking more than picking up. Nothing like playing catch with a size 2 hoof. He presented his feet a little more slowly today and we moved on without dramatics.

He is truly funny. He helped me clean his pasture by supervising the shovel and staying in my back pocket the entire time. If I put down an implement he is right there to make sure it doesn’t try to escape. He has also discovered the window in his shelter. The last couple of times I’ve driven my pickup down to his pasture there he is sticking his head out to say hi. Need to remember camera tomorrow.

I do get the feeling he’d like to be in with other horses. Maybe, down the road we’ll put him in with one or both of our horses but for now he will have to make do with being able to see and talk to them.

We switched from alfalfa pellets to alfalfa hay for the winter yesterday. It has his definite stamp of approval.

Groundwork

What a difference a day makes. I am now a firm believer in ‘concept lessons.’ Yesterday we started groundwork. It was cold and windy and wanted to rain in the worst way. Not the best day in the world to spend an hour in the round pen. Nevertheless he did well with gait changing, slowing and speeding up on cue. He was a little cranky about loping but I chalk that up to an unfamiliar round pen which is smaller than what he is used to. He got over it. Then we went to change direction. He just didn’t understand and nothing I was doing was helping him understand. If I tried backing up and approaching along the rail to apply pressure in the direction I wanted him to go he turned into me. If I kept going he would turn in a full circle. I put him on a lunge line but he acted like he’d never been on one before (he has). We were both getting really frustrated and no one was around to offer advice. So I figured if he wanted to spend all his time yielding his hindquarters that’s what we’d do. I kept moving toward his hindquarters and he kept turning to face me. Well, Clinton Anderson says two eyes are better than two heels and I certainly had two eyes on me all the time. We circled all over the round pen this way. If nothing else it was quality time although having a 1400lb puppy in your back pocket is a bit disconcerting. We need to work on personal space. After that we visited the barn for a good brushing and feet cleaning. Still trying to get him into the wash rack. I was able to back him in but once he saw what I’d done he wouldn’t do it again. A work in progress….

Today dear Whisper remembers (or figured out) that he is supposed to face me then turn when I back up and point. He’s not great at it, he prefers one direction over the other and while he will consistently (pretty much)turn in and change direction going one way he turns into the fence to head the other direction. He is incredibly sensitive to body language and my position in relation to his drive line. If I don’t stay about even or behind his hind quarters he will stop and look at me. When he turns in he is just as apt to keep turning until he faces the direction he was originally headed but a step and a glare at his hindquarters and he will readjust his position to face me. It’s a good start. We also worked on flexing and desensitizing to the stick & string and that scary 14’ lead. He did very well with both although when I first started the flexing he wanted to put his head on my shoulder. He really is a sweet boy but that’s not quite right. He got it in the end. All in all I think we both got the concept lesson yesterday.

He enjoyed his grooming today and was better about his feet. He knows what’s expected but doesn’t feel completely comfortable yet. Tomorrow in addition to groundwork I am going to do something about his mane and tail. He may like them windblown and tangled but I want to see them silky and flowing.

Acclimation- Day 1

I am so pleased with Whisper. He met the rake and survived. He went from whirling and moving off to just cocking an ear at me while I cleaned his pasture. Then, he made the acquaintance of his trainer and gave her his stamp of approval – stood there quite happily while she scratched him and told him what a beautiful boy he is. She feels he is an Appendix Horse (thoroughbred/quarter horse cross) which I believe was what I was originally told. I might have to do some digging there.

We worked on his evading skills (my catching skills). The trainer had backed up to him from the side until she was directly beside him. This worked so well that I tried it and was able to halter him without any hassle or treats.

He seems to be interested and energized by his new surroundings. We went for a walk and he grazed a little but mostly looked around. We went into the barn which was full of horse and people bustle. Their noise and even the wind whistling thru hardly bothered him. He looked at everything twice and never flinched or pranced, or showed any sign of being overly concerned. He did draw the line at the washrack. To be fair the shutters were on the windows and I think he might go in if those are pushed back and he can see out. I’ll try that tomorrow. I would like to hose down his knee although it’s looking a lot better.

After returning to the pasture he stood still while I put some cream on his leg. This is major. He has never just relaxed beside me without a halter on before. I can’t wait to start on his groundwork tomorrow.

Whisper Is Here

11/15/2009
He loaded easily and traveled beautifully. Because we were uncertain whether our horse trailer would be tall enough he was hauled to the stable by Joan Steelhammer of Equine Outreach in her spacious 3 horse trailer. Thank you, Joan. You made it so much easier.

He exited the trailer, looked around, and whinnied. There is a school of thought that says a horse’s whinny is its identification. Thus, he announced himself.

The best part of todays adventure had to be the horses. They are so incredibly curious. From the time Whisper unloaded they were gathered at the fences – in one case craning her neck over a wall – to see the newcomer.


As we walked down the road to his pasture the other horses lined the fence to check him out and say hi. The one with her tail to us is Spice. She’s a bit miffed at me.

Once in the pasture he was busy taking everything in. He talked to the kids (yearlings and 3 year olds) in the next pasture and they crowded into a corner to get as close as possible. Actually this was just the 3 year olds. The yearlings were eating as much hay as they could while their elders were distracted.

I left hay in his shelter and we left him for awhile to survey his new environment. When we returned with dinner for all three horses he was at the fence waiting for his ‘dish. He had found the hay in the shelter and made short work of his grain/vitamins/alfalfa pellets aka dinner.

He is still pretty skittish however. His shelter has a window and he
wasn’t expecting anyone to be on the other side. He did the
prettiest rollback you’ve ever seen out into the pasture to get
away from the scary person. But his dish was still there and food
won out again. He was happily munching when we left him for
the night.

Tomorrow’s agenda includes doing some cleaning in his pasture, working on his ‘I don’t wanna be caught’ issues and getting him into the wash rack to hose down his still swollen knee. Oh and convincing poor Spice she’s still number one. I imagine she’ll figure that out when I throw a saddle on her.

Trailer Loading Practice

I was out of town last week so Whisper was on his own. Initial indications were that he didn’t do too well. The rescue facility thought they had a cougar problem. Even though it turned out to be dogs or coyotes the end result was a couple of nights of terrified horses stampeding around their pastures. I don’t know if that’s how Whisper hurt his leg but when I went out to get him today his left front was swollen from his forearm to below his knee. I took him to see the resident vet tech and she said he’d just scraped it and put some ‘Surpass’ on it. We worked a little in the round pen and with exercise and the medication he stopped favoring the leg and moved out pretty well.

On to the trailer loading practice. We worked on approach and retreat which became a game for him. He’d walk up to the trailer and back away. Yep, that’s how we play that game. So, we did some lungeing close to the trailer and we practiced the sending exercise. He definitely wasn’t bothered by the trailer but he wasn’t about to get in either. Bring out the big guns. A pocketful of treats later we had both front feet in. No way was he moving his back feet. Back to the approach and retreat game. I thought about calling it a day. After all we had had 2 feet in which was more than I expected. But, you can’t take half a horse home.

Off I went to find the bigger gun and she showed me how it’s done. I’m not sure if he developed an instant trust for her or was persuaded when I picked up the handy stick and walked behind him but he walked into that trailer like a pro. We left him standing quietly for about 15 minutes then unloaded him. He unloaded slowly, quietly – better than horses that had taken dozens of trailer trips. After trailer practice I turned him out in the arena to unwind and think about things before I took him back to his pasture buddies.

I think a couple days more practice and he will be ready to come home. All the arrangements have been made. His pasture is ready for him. I’m thinking maybe next Tuesday or Wednesday.

Shots & a Pedicure

10/28/2009 - Today Whisper saw the vet and the farrier. He stood perfectly still for his shots and tried to spit wormer back at me. Both the vet and the tech said he’s a nice horse. One suggested he should be trained to jump. OK, but let’s start with the little stuff. He also needs his teeth done. He has hooks and one molar that’s growing unopposed which is a result of having a parrot mouth(overbite). Not sure what he’s going to do about that but something will be done - he will float Whisper's teeth next week. Yay! Vet indicated there would be no problem with a bit. Apparently it’s a very common condition in thoroughbreds and they race just fine with it.

He gave the farrier very little trouble – Kyle called him a big baby and he really is. I plan to leave him barefoot as long as there are no problems. The stable is rather rocky so we’ll just have to see. He may need shoes if/when we get to trail riding.

Joan (head of EOI) indicated she thought he would be fine with the trailer and that I could use the trailer there to practice loading. We’ll do that and tying in the next couple of weeks. If all goes ok he will come home around the 15th.

All in all I am really encouraged by his behavior today. He was much much calmer than some of the other horses and didn’t dance around much at all. Still hard to catch but he moves toward me when he sees me – couldn’t have anything to do with the treats.

Grooming & Groundwork

10/23/2009 – Haven’t been to see Whisper since last Saturday so I was gratified that he moved toward me before he began his game of ‘you can’t catch me.’ Treats won the day. He looks very handsome in his new halter – not sure he cared but he did respond to it.

We did some grooming – had to introduce him to the new longer lead rope which he was sure was a snake curled up by his feet. After some desensitizing grooming was completed and even managed to clean all four hooves. Great improvement from the first time I cleaned them when he kicked me. Then the wind started blowing and his lovely mane was in complete disarray which is exactly how he likes it.
Did some basic groundwork in the round pen and out and took some video for a baseline.

He did really well. He responds to what I assume are basic dressage commands (it’s how my trainer worked with my mare). We will most likely move on to Clinton Anderson’s methods but these work also so I want to incorporate what he understands and is comfortable with. He did quite a bit of lip licking today and walked along side me with his head down rather than dragging behind watching for the next attack when we returned to the pasture. It will be a real victory when this demeanor is prevalent going away from the pasture.

Spoke to my stable owner yesterday. She indicated there is room for Whisper but she’s not interested in contributing to his costs. Oh well, the seed is planted and she does want some computer work done. Will talk to the trainer on Monday.

Waiting for Whisper

Meet Whisper

Current home: EOI, Bend, OR http://equineoutreach.com/

Moving to: Prineville, OR

10/20/2009

Whisper is a big spooky boy in whom I took an interest because someone said to me he was hard to catch. Never one to ignore a challenge I can state without reservation they were right. It took me probably 20 minutes of talking and treats to just touch his muzzle the first time. It got easier and once the lead goes around his neck he has a ‘OK you got me’ attitude and stands still to be haltered but it still takes persistence and treats before he will give that opening.

He’s had some training and apparently has been ridden but he is scared of everything up to and including his own tail. His fear can be easily seen in the picture of him under saddle. He knows something out there is going to have him for breakfast.

Given that he tries to be good. He learns quickly but needs to be worked on a continuous basis. Once a week won’t do for this boy. To that end I am going to foster him for at least 3 months to try to help him overcome his fears and become a saddle horse. The stable where I board my mare ("The Princess" Spice) employs a trainer with an extensive dressage background. I want to have her evaluate him for possible training for low level dressage. His build and gaits seem to me to be perfect for it but I’ll leave it up to the more knowledgeable to determine that course. Right now I’m trying to think of everything I need to do to get ready for him.

I’ve ordered his halter. The Clinton Anderson halter helped immensely with Spice so I’m hoping it will help with some of Whisper’s issues like paying attention and backing up. I have lead ropes – no problem there. I have 2 extra headstalls that may fit him – probably won’t need them for awhile. My saddle has full quarter horse bars and that might work but may have to look into a treeless saddle for him. Might just be the excuse I need to get a Bob Marshall endurance saddle – but not yet. Don’t have a winter blanket that will fit but he wouldn’t be blanketed at EOI anyway. I’ll deal with that when it is a problem.

That takes care of the little stuff. Now the big stuff. Stabling. Not cheap. I’m planning to talk to the owner of the stable and see if she will take a tax write-off for all or some of the fees. There is plenty of unused pasture and I can certainly help restring the tape. After all, it was my horse that destroyed it after the power went out. In her defense it had been out for a couple of months and there was new grass almost within reach on the other side if she could just lean out a little further. You can see where this is going.

The next big thing is huge. Can he be loaded on a trailer; will he haul calmly? I’m hoping EOI has a trailer I can practice with. This entire project will be much easier if the hauling issue is resolved before I try to bring him home.