Kiki has over a week off due to spring camp at the farm. I got to see her a couple of times, but I didn't have a chance to handle her. She got her vaccinations a few days ago, so she was feeling pretty frisky when I grabbed her from the paddock yesterday. She didn't start a game of chase this time and was happy to see me -- the mare loves attention (secretly) and we walked quietly to the barn so she could have dinner and settle a bit. Of course, she needed to remind me of her status and gave my arm a good chomp on the walk in, it was entirely my fault as I let my guard down for .09876 of a second. Bad behavior will not be tolerated and she was reprimanded with a quick smack on the muzzle with the lead rope. L was in a bit of a hurry last night, so I skipped grooming her and got right to tacking her up. Now, for a horse that has been started three times, she really acts nutty about getting tacked (*I found out why a little later). The trick with this horse is to do everything in a predictable way, so there are no surprises for her. She did not have a hay net to much on which she was tied today and she was reeling around the stall a bit, but she got over herself and realized that I wasn't going to back down when she starts protesting. She kicks her back feet a lot while the saddle is going on (again, this will come up later) but the trick is to just continue what you're doing and let her work it out on her own. Our new routine is to get her ready (sans bridle) and let her hang out for about 15 minutes to get used to the saddle, etc. She was a perfect angel for the bridle (generally this involves a wrestling match with her cannonball like head) and was quite ready to get to work. I brought her into the indoor where two girls were having a dressage lesson (I am sure they really appreciated me bringing in this hot, silly horse), but we walked around for a few minutes until she settled down. B commented that we looked good together and that she seemed relaxed (or more so than usual - and reminded me that she's has a week off). She is always a bit spastic when we are getting her ready for long-lining and it's certainly a 2 person job to get her set up. Though I know she respects L tremendously, she's also afraid of him and so she climbs all over me to get away from him! He started her, just for a second and then immediately had me take over. Long-lining in a circle is incredibly difficult when you have a horse that needs to assert herself and keeps crowding you, but I got the hang of it, and reminded myself to stay still and pivot and not to chase her. We spent the rest of the lesson walking around the arena doing lots of turns and keeping her focused on me. I have never met a horse that the second you take your mind off of them, they take advantage of it...she is quick to remind you of this. I am getting a really good feel for what she will be like once I ride her. She is a bit stubborn and protests, but nothing big or scary. She's not spooky at all, just hot...I think that will all level out with time and training. I really felt like I could have hopped on her and walked around today. By the end of our session, she was relaxed, chewing the bit, and really focused on me. I am building confidence with her every time we get to work together. I felt completely fine sponging her off without help and she even relaxed enough to hand graze while I did so. I turned her out with her herd and although I had been warned of her antics at the gate, I felt like I could handle her like any other horse (mistake). I unclipped the halter (still needing to pull it over her head) she broke away from me and went straight up into a giant rear. I stood still holding the very end of the lead rope until she put her feet back down, where she cowardly walked towards me knowing she screwed up, dropped her head and let me pull the halter off. She tore off squealing. Silly horse.
*So the issue with saddle? Well, B told me that she has major anxiety about the saddle because during one of her previous starts she was being girthed in her stall and she freaked out (maybe it was too much tightening too fast?) and flipped over, scaring herself. I am a big believer in tightening the girth away from the barn anyway, but she is incredibly sensitive about the saddle, so little by little she'll get used to it, and that it's not going to strangle her.
I stayed late to watch some friends ride and hung out by her paddock where she came over for some love. She is a super affectionate horse and I really enjoy that she loves having her face rubbed...every inch of it, even her ears! So we finished the day on a good note and I have to say, I think she likes me...At least I hope so.
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