An Update
I have recently revisited this blog to reminisce about Sunny's younger years. It's hard to believe that I'm talking about the same horse! The last time I posted, I was gearing up for our first event at beginner novice and was working on going for a trail ride. Now, a year and a half later, Sunny is competing at training level, and goes for a trail ride nearly every day on a loose rein. One thing that hasn't changed: we are still working on power and straightness. Since my last post, Sunny has breezed through beginner novice and novice, and is treating training level like it's no big deal. Some competition highlights include: reserve champion at her first novice level dressage show, first place at her first 2 events at novice, first place on our dressage score of 23 at her first recognized show along with the TIP and Jockey Club champion awards, and first place at her first training level event. When we're not competing, I focus mostly on dressage and we've come a long way as far as developing relaxation, suppleness and connection. We still struggle with day to day things like keeping weight on her, keeping shoes on her, and pulling her mane. Thankfully, we've developed a great relationship, which has made trailering and all around handling much easier. I feel like I know Sunny so much better now and we have gotten to the point where we both know exactly how to ask the other to make something happen. She's really matured and is reasonable about most things, but she still has that quirky personality that I fell in love with 2 years ago. We still have a lot to work on,and I'm excited to see where this little mare and I can go.
First Week of April
This mare is too sweet!
This week we have been focusing on the details with Sunny's dressage. We want more push and more straightness. To achieve this, I really want to keep her right shoulder connected, as she likes to pop it out. Endless counterbending circles as well as lateral work will be the solution to this problem. Anything I can do to control that shoulder will be usefull. Also, our new dressage saddle will be here in two months! I'm sure that will also help us tremendously. Sunny this week has had really good days and really bad days. Our lesson on Friday left us exhausted with not much improvement (that I could feel, atleast). On Saturday the weather was nice (FINALLY!), so I took Sunny to the large outdoor arena to work. She has previously had problems in this arena since she can't see the other horses. This ride was a major improvement because there was no rearing, spinning or bolting. Saturday was a great day for us because she was pushing through her back and everything was collecting nicely. I did ask for a little shoulder-in, which she refused to do by swinging her butt in towards the center of the arena. I asked for a lengthening and instead got a fast, running trot. Oh well, we'll work on it. Sunday was semi-disastrous. It was beautiful outside so I took her for an experiment trail ride to see how she would behave. I had to give myself a little pep talk before and it went something like this....
"What's the big deal. If she rears and bolts, you can stay on- you've done it before. Just keep riding- at least it could make a fun story one day. And so what if you fall? You're young- you will bounce."
And so I talked myself into taking the spooky little horse on a trail ride- and what do you know- SHE WAS PERFECT!! No spooking, rearing, bucking, bolting, not even a blink at the trees. WHERE HAS MY HORSE GONE!?! I was left wondering that same thing after we returned to the arena and started working. Little by little Sunny fell apart until we were back at square one. If you want to know what square one is, go read the first blog post- that's what we were reduced to. After an hour, we were both done and there was no improvement. Hopefully next week will go a little smoother. The Horse Trials is on Sunday- it will be her first full event at beginner novice!
"What's the big deal. If she rears and bolts, you can stay on- you've done it before. Just keep riding- at least it could make a fun story one day. And so what if you fall? You're young- you will bounce."
And so I talked myself into taking the spooky little horse on a trail ride- and what do you know- SHE WAS PERFECT!! No spooking, rearing, bucking, bolting, not even a blink at the trees. WHERE HAS MY HORSE GONE!?! I was left wondering that same thing after we returned to the arena and started working. Little by little Sunny fell apart until we were back at square one. If you want to know what square one is, go read the first blog post- that's what we were reduced to. After an hour, we were both done and there was no improvement. Hopefully next week will go a little smoother. The Horse Trials is on Sunday- it will be her first full event at beginner novice!
March
Sunny stadium jumping at the Combined Test.
In March, we started showing again! On the 16th we did a Cross Derby at beginner novice and I was so proud of her behavior. She loaded on the trailer(!!!!), and then when we got the the show she stood semi-quietly outside the trailer. She even let me tie her to the trailer which is the first time that has ever happened. In warm-up, she was much better about horses coming at her and there was no rearing or spinning. She jumped clear , but we were 30 seconds too fast, so we ended up second. Still, I'm very proud of her behavior especially for the first show out at a new level. Unfortunatley, it took 15 minutes to get her on the trailer to go home- I guess she wanted to stay! On the 24th, we went to a combined test. We did beginner novice and I definitely found where her weakness is. Dressage warm-up was crowded (as usual) and she was tense. Without jumps to focus on, she just wanted to run away. As a result, this made our dressage test somewhat crappy. The judge must've taken pity on us because we got a 34. Not our best score, (acutally it's our worst), but it's not terrible. She had lots of fun jumping and we ended up 5th of 18. Not too shabby :) Next show on April 14th- fingers crossed for a better test. Pictures of the Combined Test will be in the Pictures tab. A Helmet Cam video of the Derby is in the Video tab.
Everything Until February 18th
With show season right around the corner, I decided it was time to start recording Sunny's progress again. This winter we have mainly focused on our dressage and it has improved greatly. We are working on the Novice Level Test B right now, with plans to start working on the Training Level tests soon. With all of her new muscle and weight, Sunny has become a different horse. She is calmer and relaxed when we work in the arena and she enjoys doing her job. We are working on gearing up to a full trail ride, and we are getting very close! With the Cross Derby in about a month, we have started working on jumping. Balance and relaxation will be important if Sunny and I are ever going to figure this out. Our farrier suggested hind shoes to improve the quality of her transitions and we gave it a try. While her left lead canter transition is a million times better, it seems that the right lead has suffered. We had finally gotten the perfect canter after so much hard work. In fact, the right lead had become the better lead. Whether it's a coincidence or not, these hind shoes have put us back at square one with the right lead. We can't even canter a full 20 meter circle without cross cantering. It's possible that she tweaked something in the field, but she has no heat in her right stifle and looks perfectly sound. We will be working on balance again, since that seems to be forgotten recently. I have my first lesson in February on Friday, so hopefully we will be able to solve some problems.
I have put videos in the Videos tab of Sunny jumping today and her doing some dressage a few months ago. I will try to get some more recent dressage videos soon! Also, there is a helmet cam video of Sunny's first successful trail ride with less rearing and spinning than usual. The picture shows me and Sunny in early December before she got clipped.
I have put videos in the Videos tab of Sunny jumping today and her doing some dressage a few months ago. I will try to get some more recent dressage videos soon! Also, there is a helmet cam video of Sunny's first successful trail ride with less rearing and spinning than usual. The picture shows me and Sunny in early December before she got clipped.
Week 10
This week, I had my lesson on Tuesday. We worked on the same things we usually do along with getting the trot relaxed after we canter. Usually, after we canter, the trot gets very fast and she stops being supple. We did many walk trot canter transitions to get her supple and listening. On Wednesday, I rode Sunny in the outdoor arena and jumped her. We worked on keeping an even speed to the jump by doing 10 meter circles before and after it. Thursday and Friday were spent working on dressage and doing lots of hill work. Sunny decided to show off her racing skills on Thursday by taking off at a full gallop up the hill. She managed to buck and gallop all the way up the hill on her right lead. I wonder how fast she can go on flat ground on her left lead. On Saturday, I worked on loading Sunny into the trailer. I spent an hour and a half with her and managed to get her on the trailer 4 times. The key is to get her close to the tramp and then pick up one foot at a time and place it on the trailer. I also lunged her on Saturday. She was very good and listened well to the "whoa" command which is unusual for her. On Snday, I didn't ride for very long, but she was perfect. I managed to canter a few times in each direction and still get a controlled trot back, afterwards. When I was done riding, I got a bucket of grain and walked her over to where the trailer was parked. I put the grain in the trailer where she could reach it with her feet still on the gravel. I stomped around on the trailer and made lots of noises while she ate. She was fine untill a group of horses in a near by field decided to run around and buck, which caused Sunny to get nervous. I walked her back to her field and put her away. She was a very good girl this week and I hope she decides to keep being good next week.
Week 9
Sunny got Monday off so she could rest from the show. On Tuesday she was a bundle of energy. We rode in the outdoor and the entire hour I rode her was spent trying to get her to slow down and relax. We did several spiraling circles and serpentines and ended the ride by jumping a small course. On Wednesday, I only rode her for about 45 minutes. She was falling in and getting very unbalanced at the canter, so we did spiral-out circles to get her off of my inside leg. On Thursday, I set up a 2 foot vertical with a pole 9 feet on either side of it. Sunny has been rushing her jumps and I used these poles as a "speed bump" to get her to slow down before and after the jump. I had a lesson on Friday and we worked on engaging her hind end. We got her leg yielding around the circle and kept her shoulders connected. We also used these exercises to remind her that pressure with one leg means bend, not go forward. On Saturday, I took her all the way around the hacking field by herself. She was nervous, but she didn't spook or bolt like she normaly does! I spent the rest of the ride going up and down hills to build muscle. On Sunday, I worked on dressage for a while, and then set up a course to jump. She was rushing the jumps again, so we went back to keeping a steady rhythm over trot poles before we tried to jump again.
Before and after every ride, I've been trotting Sunny up the "work-out hill" twice. I've also been doing belly lifts to build muscle. After I tighten the girth, I stretch Sunny's front legs out. Often times she bows like a dog. Sometimes she goes so low that her girth touches the ground, but she never lays down completely. She is a very sweet horse with a fun, curious personality. She fits right in with our family!
I put some more videos of Sunny jumping and our dressage test in the "Videos" tab
Before and after every ride, I've been trotting Sunny up the "work-out hill" twice. I've also been doing belly lifts to build muscle. After I tighten the girth, I stretch Sunny's front legs out. Often times she bows like a dog. Sometimes she goes so low that her girth touches the ground, but she never lays down completely. She is a very sweet horse with a fun, curious personality. She fits right in with our family!
I put some more videos of Sunny jumping and our dressage test in the "Videos" tab
Week 8 and First Show
On Sunday (9/16), I worked on doing ground work with Sunny. We practiced turn on the forehand and turn on the haunches, back up and walking politely on the lead rope.
On Monday, I practiced making her stretch into the bridle and relax her back. We worked on softness and getting equal contact in both reins. After the ride, I took Sunny on a trail ride with my gelding Ash. We went around the whole field with only 1 spook! She got Tuesday off because I don't want to overwork her joints at such a young age. We are going to aim for 4-5 rides a week.
She was full of energy on Wednesday! I did spiral in and spiral out circles to get her balanced and slower. I worked on the half pass at the walk and I was surprised she did it the first try! I set up a narrow jump in the ring to work on having her between my legs, and it backfired on me. Sunny jumped the 18" jump like it was 3 feet tall! Then, I spent the rest of the ride trying to get her to slow down again. I decided that I had tired her out enough, so I took off her saddle and sat on her bareback at the end of the ride. I did one circle at the walk and then got off. She didn't mind me up there.
On Friday, I had a lesson and we worked on engaging her right hind leg. It is much weaker than her left hind, so she wasn't too happy about working it. She kicked out a few times, and once, she kicked the wall. All of the dressage letters fell off the wall! We did serpentines and circles to get her hind engaged and to stop her head twisting habit. I didn't do much work with her on Saturday because we had a show on Sunday. I jumped courses for about 30 minutes and then I was done.
On Sunday, I went to the barn at about 10:30 to groom her and whiten her whites. I filled up the hay net and put water in the trailer. When we tried to put Sunny in the trailer, she absolutly refused. She started to rear and swing her butt around. After about 30 minutes of trying, I decided to go get some grain. She got on the trailer for food, and we were off to the show. I got her off the trailer and tacked up when we got to Greystone Farm. I warmed up for about 45 minutes and she was stretching into the bridle and using her back, just like we practiced. I was one of the first in my division, so there weren't too many people warming up. When it was my turn to go into the dressage ring, Sunny became tense. The sand, ring, and judge's car were all white, and I could barely see, the sun was so bright. When the judge rang the bell, Sunny spooked and started cantering. I got her back to the trot and entered the ring. The whole test was pretty tense and not accurate, but we scored a 42.5. Then, I went to the stadium ring for warm up. She was fine in warm up and even better in the ring. She didn't look at one jump and was happy just to trot around. We went clear and got 7th out of 9 in our division. At the end of the day, I did another dressage test. It felt 10 times better and we scored a 39.1. We got first!
Overall, Sunny was so good at her first show. Once she gets comfortable on the trailer, I think she will really like going out and about. I will post more pictures from the show in the pictures tab, and maybe a video in the videos tab.
On Monday, I practiced making her stretch into the bridle and relax her back. We worked on softness and getting equal contact in both reins. After the ride, I took Sunny on a trail ride with my gelding Ash. We went around the whole field with only 1 spook! She got Tuesday off because I don't want to overwork her joints at such a young age. We are going to aim for 4-5 rides a week.
She was full of energy on Wednesday! I did spiral in and spiral out circles to get her balanced and slower. I worked on the half pass at the walk and I was surprised she did it the first try! I set up a narrow jump in the ring to work on having her between my legs, and it backfired on me. Sunny jumped the 18" jump like it was 3 feet tall! Then, I spent the rest of the ride trying to get her to slow down again. I decided that I had tired her out enough, so I took off her saddle and sat on her bareback at the end of the ride. I did one circle at the walk and then got off. She didn't mind me up there.
On Friday, I had a lesson and we worked on engaging her right hind leg. It is much weaker than her left hind, so she wasn't too happy about working it. She kicked out a few times, and once, she kicked the wall. All of the dressage letters fell off the wall! We did serpentines and circles to get her hind engaged and to stop her head twisting habit. I didn't do much work with her on Saturday because we had a show on Sunday. I jumped courses for about 30 minutes and then I was done.
On Sunday, I went to the barn at about 10:30 to groom her and whiten her whites. I filled up the hay net and put water in the trailer. When we tried to put Sunny in the trailer, she absolutly refused. She started to rear and swing her butt around. After about 30 minutes of trying, I decided to go get some grain. She got on the trailer for food, and we were off to the show. I got her off the trailer and tacked up when we got to Greystone Farm. I warmed up for about 45 minutes and she was stretching into the bridle and using her back, just like we practiced. I was one of the first in my division, so there weren't too many people warming up. When it was my turn to go into the dressage ring, Sunny became tense. The sand, ring, and judge's car were all white, and I could barely see, the sun was so bright. When the judge rang the bell, Sunny spooked and started cantering. I got her back to the trot and entered the ring. The whole test was pretty tense and not accurate, but we scored a 42.5. Then, I went to the stadium ring for warm up. She was fine in warm up and even better in the ring. She didn't look at one jump and was happy just to trot around. We went clear and got 7th out of 9 in our division. At the end of the day, I did another dressage test. It felt 10 times better and we scored a 39.1. We got first!
Overall, Sunny was so good at her first show. Once she gets comfortable on the trailer, I think she will really like going out and about. I will post more pictures from the show in the pictures tab, and maybe a video in the videos tab.
Week 7
Sunny and I jumping our first oxer.
This week, Sunny and I had a few great rides. At the beginning of the week, we jumped our first oxer. We also worked on courses, and jumped the biggest we have ever jumped. She was getting every distance and being very careful with her footing. The next day, I wanted to work on our flat work. Her back was tense, she was bored, and I was frustrated. She wouldn't come round, or bend around my leg. I decided that I was just going to go for a trail ride instead. We went half way around the field with no problems!
During my lesson, we worked on getting her to relax in her back. We went back to the walk and worked on getting her shoulder to come around the circle. We did left bend, right bend, and then straight, while really working her shoulder. Within ten minutes she was relaxing into the bridle and using her back! She was moving nicer than my novice level gelding! I also practiced my dressage test (Intro test B) during my lesson. On the second try , it was almost perfect. I just have to work on staying straight in the halt, and really getting her to stretch down and forwards in the free walk.
On Saturday, we went to Serra Valley to cross country school. This was Sunny's second cross country school ever, but her first one alone. It took a few tries to get her on the trailer, but eventually she walked right on. When she got off the trailer, she looked around and then started eating. She didn't care at all about being alone in a new place. We started in the show jumping ring, but once she was warmed up, we went to the cross country field. Sunny did banks and drops (even into water), ditches, coops, steps, a coffin jump, and even went over a bridge! I still can't find a jump that scares this horse! There is a link in the "Videos" tab to a video of Sunny jumping.
Next weekend, we are going to Greystone Farm ( look in the show schedule tab for a link) to do a combined test. I know that Sunny can do the dressage and jumping, but the question is, will she be able to do it with other horses around.
During my lesson, we worked on getting her to relax in her back. We went back to the walk and worked on getting her shoulder to come around the circle. We did left bend, right bend, and then straight, while really working her shoulder. Within ten minutes she was relaxing into the bridle and using her back! She was moving nicer than my novice level gelding! I also practiced my dressage test (Intro test B) during my lesson. On the second try , it was almost perfect. I just have to work on staying straight in the halt, and really getting her to stretch down and forwards in the free walk.
On Saturday, we went to Serra Valley to cross country school. This was Sunny's second cross country school ever, but her first one alone. It took a few tries to get her on the trailer, but eventually she walked right on. When she got off the trailer, she looked around and then started eating. She didn't care at all about being alone in a new place. We started in the show jumping ring, but once she was warmed up, we went to the cross country field. Sunny did banks and drops (even into water), ditches, coops, steps, a coffin jump, and even went over a bridge! I still can't find a jump that scares this horse! There is a link in the "Videos" tab to a video of Sunny jumping.
Next weekend, we are going to Greystone Farm ( look in the show schedule tab for a link) to do a combined test. I know that Sunny can do the dressage and jumping, but the question is, will she be able to do it with other horses around.
September 8th and 9th
Yesterday (September 8th) was a HUGE turning point for Sunny! We rode in the ring with four other horses and she didn't try to race them, or get tense. We decided to try a trail ride with the group, and she went perfectly without spooking once!
Today (the 9th) ,we went around a quarter of the field all by ourselves with no spooking or nervousness! The corn was even blowing around! They key is keeping her in a frame and really forward. She also did a line of elevated trot poles and it only took her a few tries to actually trot over them. Unfortunatly her shoe is loose so we couldn't jump. The farrier comes tomorrow, and then I will do everything I can to make scary jumps. Sunny is a very curious mare, and so far has jumped anything and everything I point her out. I need to find something to work on :)
Picture: Not of Sunny, but I did my first (and only) mock hunt this weekend with my gelding. More pictures of the hunt will be in the picture tab.
Today (the 9th) ,we went around a quarter of the field all by ourselves with no spooking or nervousness! The corn was even blowing around! They key is keeping her in a frame and really forward. She also did a line of elevated trot poles and it only took her a few tries to actually trot over them. Unfortunatly her shoe is loose so we couldn't jump. The farrier comes tomorrow, and then I will do everything I can to make scary jumps. Sunny is a very curious mare, and so far has jumped anything and everything I point her out. I need to find something to work on :)
Picture: Not of Sunny, but I did my first (and only) mock hunt this weekend with my gelding. More pictures of the hunt will be in the picture tab.
Weeks 5 and 6
Sunny and her new buddy.
These weeks, I worked on gymnastics and trail riding. Week five, I worked on getting Sunny to relax when we weren't in the arena. I rode her around the barn, in her field, and any where that she could see the barn, but wasn't in a ring. We did lots of bending and backing up to help her relax. We also attemped trot poles. She managed to launch herself over all of the poles (an impressive 16 feet!) instead of trotting over them. After an hour she started to get the right idea. I honestly have no idea how I've managed to stay on this mare so far.
This week was the first week that Sunny has not tried to kick at the fly spray. Finally- improvement!! Sunny also picked up a new habit. She has decided that if I walk away from her, she will paw untill I come back. I'm trying to just ignore her when she does this. She has also started to stretch like a dog when I tighten her girth. She gets a poke in the belly for this.
During my lesson on week 6, I went on a trail ride. My trainer helped me through her bad behavior, and we managed to get all the way around the hay field with only 4 spooks! This is a HUGE accomplishment. Sunny went in a new field this week with a new friend. This gelding is 22 years old and they get along great!
Homework: Make scary jumps, and plan a date to get off the property and go cross country schooling. I'm trying to find a nice little schooling show or dressage show to try.
This week was the first week that Sunny has not tried to kick at the fly spray. Finally- improvement!! Sunny also picked up a new habit. She has decided that if I walk away from her, she will paw untill I come back. I'm trying to just ignore her when she does this. She has also started to stretch like a dog when I tighten her girth. She gets a poke in the belly for this.
During my lesson on week 6, I went on a trail ride. My trainer helped me through her bad behavior, and we managed to get all the way around the hay field with only 4 spooks! This is a HUGE accomplishment. Sunny went in a new field this week with a new friend. This gelding is 22 years old and they get along great!
Homework: Make scary jumps, and plan a date to get off the property and go cross country schooling. I'm trying to find a nice little schooling show or dressage show to try.
Weeks 3 and 4
The end of one of our rides.
This is the week that I got laughed at by all of my barn friends who own mares. I took Sunny to work in one of the out door arenas and she was TERRIBLE. She was bucking and bolting and spooking like crazy! I couldn't figure out why she was acting so crazy. I thought maybe it could be the amout of food she was eating. 14 pounds of grain a day must be high in calories, right? I called the vet to ask her what to do about cutting back on the food. The vet's response baffled me. She said, "Could she be in heat?". I had never thought about that because I had never owned a mare before. I had no idea what to look faro, so I went to my trusty friend, Google. Yep, she was in heat- at least that explains her behavior!
I jumped her for the first time at home this week. I put saddle pads on the jumps, tied ribbons to the jumps, and even jumped her in and out of puddles. I can't scare this horse! We started belly lifts and carrot stretches trying to build muscle in her "racing neck".
Homework these weeks: Right lead canter and bending (of course), start jumping lines and gymnastics.
I jumped her for the first time at home this week. I put saddle pads on the jumps, tied ribbons to the jumps, and even jumped her in and out of puddles. I can't scare this horse! We started belly lifts and carrot stretches trying to build muscle in her "racing neck".
Homework these weeks: Right lead canter and bending (of course), start jumping lines and gymnastics.
Week 2
Starting week 2, I had Sunny lunging both directions, letting me feel her ears, and a 50% success rate with the right lead canter. I rode her 6 days this week, and almost every day we did the same thing. Bend around the inside leg, lots of circles, and attempt after attempt on the right lead canter. During my lesson this week we worked on the right lead, and I found my mistake! I had her over bent to the inside, trying to over compensate for her lack of bend in the rib cage. After I got this sorted out, we got the right lead almost every time!
When I got Sunny, I was under the impression that I had a big, brave, eventing mare, and why would she care if we went for a trail ride? BIG MISTAKE. On Thursady of this week, my mom rode my gelding, and I rode Sunny out in the fields. When we got to a point in the field were we couldn't see the barn, Sunny flipped. She got tense and nervous, wouldn't walk forwards, and started rearing. She managed to kick my gelding (thank goodness he didn't care), rear and spin, and take off galloping towards the barn. I managed to stop her, I got off and walked her back to the ring. I made her work HARD that day. Every trail ride since has been just like this.
No pictures this week, but lots to work on...
When I got Sunny, I was under the impression that I had a big, brave, eventing mare, and why would she care if we went for a trail ride? BIG MISTAKE. On Thursady of this week, my mom rode my gelding, and I rode Sunny out in the fields. When we got to a point in the field were we couldn't see the barn, Sunny flipped. She got tense and nervous, wouldn't walk forwards, and started rearing. She managed to kick my gelding (thank goodness he didn't care), rear and spin, and take off galloping towards the barn. I managed to stop her, I got off and walked her back to the ring. I made her work HARD that day. Every trail ride since has been just like this.
No pictures this week, but lots to work on...