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Post by michellep on Sept 8, 2008 10:49:19 GMT -5
Turtle and I did the Buck Creek prize ride this weekend, and what a fun time it was. We went up Friday night and camped with some friends and rode on Saturday for about a 2 hour ride. Turtle did great, he was nervous at first with new strange horses behind him but settled down fairly quickly. He was tired after that ride because my husbands horse was setting a pretty fast pace. On Sunday the place was packed for the ride and Turtle was pretty hyped up at the beginning. His biggest fear was the coffee can with the poker chips in it. He thought it was surely going to eat him alive. So I got to experience just how fast he could back up and how loudly he can snort. There were at least 4 stops like this and by the last one he had figured out that the can meant no harm to him. He crossed bridges just fine and finally got okay with strange horses behind him. At one check point he just kept looking at the horse behind him as if to say "dont bite me and I wont kick you". Overall he did great, another successful ride in beautiful country.
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Post by mtangel on Sept 8, 2008 11:15:07 GMT -5
Sounds like a successful weekend! I'm a believer that miles, miles, miles are what make our horses successful in their lifetimes and get them past the "little" things in their lives, especially when they start believing in their riders. Good job!
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Post by beckybee on Sept 8, 2008 13:51:44 GMT -5
Yay! You guys are doing so well together!
If you give him grain in a can or metal pan, he'll quickly look forward to the sight/sound. I've been soaking Raz's feet and I figured the easiest thing would be to put his feet in disposable aluminum pie pans. He thought for sure those were horse killing weapons. A few carrot slices and a cup of grain ratting around - he likes the rattling/crinkling sound now!
Oh, also, I think the not liking to be followed thing is a dominance issue. Dominant horses drive submissive horses from behind, so he thinks by following him they are bossing him around. I always thought that the submissive horses wanted to follow and the dominant horses take the lead, but it's actually the other way around. (I'm learning that apparently "lead" horses are not necessarily "dominant" horses.)
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Post by MustangAppy on Sept 8, 2008 17:58:36 GMT -5
Heh. The can issue is similar to other desensitizing issues. Paladin was terrified of tarps when I first got him. Then we put the hay stack near the paddock, covered with a big flapping tarp. Now he is like "So tarps are were the hay lives? Here, let me help you pull that thing off there!". Horses are funny critters. Reaction one "Is it going to kill me?"; reaction two "Well, if it isn't going to attack, can I eat it?". LOL
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Post by cutiepiepmu on Sept 8, 2008 23:59:44 GMT -5
lol!!!!!
Sara
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