Starting over!!!

Well since I decided to start from the beginning again things have been going really well and Kizzy really enjoys it. I have been doing a lot of rope work especially around her belly and hind end. I want her to get used to all these sensations so that when I do put the saddle on again and the breast plate it will be no big deal. I have been making her move away from pressure and she is doing wonderful I also have continued to work on voice commands which she seems to understand better now. I am really working on trust with her so she completely trusts me, and she is really becoming a lot less worried when I move all over around her... I am also working on standing by her on a bucket so that I am a bit taller and rubbing her all over then when she is first mounted she will be used to somebody being there. I figure I am in no rush and I am enjoying all the work I do with her.. She follows me around the pasture now and loves to be scratched...So Sweet!!!

It has been busy!!!

It seems like we have been running everywhere so I haven't had as much time as I wanted to work with Kizzy. Once the refi on our house goes through it will be back to more normal activities. I decided since Kizzy has been a bit fearful of the saddle I moved to quickly without enough prep work. So we are back to square one with the saddle. This is fine since I am in no hurry and I am having a blast. Leslie helped me with a few ideas on how to get her comfortable with the saddle and girth so she will be happy and comfortable once we get it on again.

Sometimes I feel I move more quickly with her because she is easy going and doesn't really react to things which is great. The only problem with that is I don't realize she has an issue with something until after she already has one. I just carry on with things then she reacts to something and I realize I did not prepare her for what I was doing and she has never had it done before. I just expect her to be good about everything and forget sometimes that she is so young with so little experience it just takes getting used to. She is such a joy to work with and I am hoping to do some really fun things with her in the next few months. I have a bunch of fun training activities planned....

Saddle is a success!!!

Well we have been working on putting the bridle on and getting her used to the bit and she has been doing very well. After the surcingle slipped I was a little hesitant about using it again. It has no elastic and it is hard to get it tight with give. I decided to just use the saddle instead. We worked on getting it on and off and moving it around but I didn't try the girth again for a while. On Friday I decided to give it a go and after a few bucks she was good and lunging like a champ. I did the same thing on Sunday and although she moved a bit more because she new what was coming she still did very good. I try to alternate days so she doesn't think we are going to be doing something she is not fond of everyday. So now we continue working on getting her used to all the normal tack (saddle, bridle, boots etc) then slowly introduce the breast plate, stirrups etc... I am taking it slow because I want this to be a positive experience and I want her to become a horse that nothing really phases.