Training Log for Cielo Tobis

7/13/07 Cielo went to his new home with Victoria Mattson in Appleton, WI. Wonderful match.

7/10/07 Took him on a hack after some ring work. Did well.

6/27/07 Trail ride with a group of friends. He was a delight and behaved excellently and had fun.

6/16-17/07 Took him horsecamping at Brushy Creek state park near Fort Dodge. He was a delight. Good in the group, over terrain, through creeks, stood tied to a h itching post when not being ridden. Very good boy.

6/2/07 Hunter pace at Cedar Run in eastern Iowa. He was foot prefect and had a blast, including going through chest-deep water (with good solid footing underneath). We jumped a lot and he was great, both along and in groups, leading and following, up an down big hills.

5/27/07 Schooling HT at Wind's Reach in eastern Iowa. Second after dressage, clear xc, clear showjumping and won his first beginner novice HT. Laid down and slept in stall between phases. Nonchalent. Pictures and video to come.

5/26/07 Dressage school, which went very well. Then a bath and a stall overnight to see if he will stay a little clean, at least not entirely mud-covered as the rest of the herd is! He has a friend's horse in a stall nearby to keep him company.

5/24/07 Dressage school. Asked him to come through and over his neck and into the reins. It was a bit of a challenge for him, but he is smart and willing, so made great strides.

5/22/07 Dressage school at KMJ then hauled over to Margaret's for a XC school which went well.

5/21/07 Dressage session. He was quite "up" but came around eventually to some nice work.

5/20/07 Sheath cleaning for all the boys. He was very well behaved.

5/19/07 Schooled Xc at Margarets. Had a blast. Learned about water and ditches. He picked it up very quickly and enjoyed himself!

5/11-23/07 Took him to Longview horse trial to see the sights. I rode him there Friday and Saturday. He did very well and was unimpressed by all the activity.

5/9/07 Another good session and a brief trail ride. No problem. Trailered home well.

5/8/07 Trailered out Monday through Wednesday to Council Bluffs so that I could ride him while there. He traveled well and schooled well in the new surroundings.

5/3/07 Took a trail ride and he was very good. Enjoyed himself immensely. Drew blood for coggins and health certificate for next week.

5/1/07 Worked in the arena on transitions and such. He did very well. He is enjoying being in the herd here and very pleased with life.

4/29/07 Trail hack with Cielo. He was excellent. Relaxed about the usual things that surprise horses, like the collapsed grain bins and an old agricultural dump in one section of the trail. Did the usual things the off track guys do: didn't naturally follow the curve of the game trails and was surprised by a bird or two popping out. This will pass quickly, so it is fun to note while it is here. Really excellent.

4/28/07 Moved him over to our house since it is going to be a while before the pasture at KMJ is dry enough for them to get out, and our pasture is large enough to support another horse this time of year. He and Speck remembered each other and the other horses were reasonably mellow in their response to him. He galloped fast and joyously about the place several times in the afternoon. Then he'd graze a while, then a little jaunt about the place. Sure beats the small paddock he had been in. He's got a pretty big grin on his face.

4/27/07 Warmed up in the arena and then went for a trail ride with a friend. Jumped the railroad tie jumps no problem. Did some cantering together. He was fairly inspired when she did a walk/canter transition right next to him, pretty sure that he was expected to go and go now, which, I guess, is no surprise. He was very good.

4/26/07 Fairly miserable outside so worked inside. After a warmup worked on downward transitions, which went very well

4/25/07 Warm up in the arena with some walk and trot work, then on to canter and jumping a small oxer on the diagonal, which was no problem. Did some experimenting and he offered some automatic lead changes and also lead changes off seat and leg cues. The auto changes were very smooth, and the ones off seat and leg wouldn't take much to shine up to excellent with some attention. Great fun.

4/24/07 Raining like crazy outside so in the arena we worked on some long trot with his neck down, canter transitions and downward transitions, which all went very well.

4/23/07 Longed him for 20 in the morning and at night as I just had a few minutes between lessons and wanted to have him move a bit. Back at it tomorrow.

4/19/07 XC school at Walnut Creek. He was excellent. Video.

4/16/07 I rode Cielo on a hack over to the local xc course. I was just seeing how long it would take to hack there and how he would do on the hack. It takes 25 minutes at a walk and trot and he did excellently. He had to go past a feedlot, houses, mailboxes and over a new bridge with shiny guaradrails. He was wonderful. Very sane and enjoyed himself.

4/11/07 Really nasty outside so horses in for teh day. I rode Cielo for over an hour so that he would get enough exercise to enjoy his rest inside. We did a lot of work on transitions within and to and from gaits and did some galloping. It was way fun and he was very good.

4/9/07 Longed and rode. Did a lot of lateral work which really helped him come through his neck and into the bridle. He had some exceptionally good canter work.

4/7/07 Longed and then rode. Did a lot of trot work, long and low. He did very well.

4/5/07 I'm keeping him in a stall for a few days because the mud outside froze and now is a lumping unfun mess. Hard on hooves, plus it is cold out! So today I got him out and let him run around the arena for half and hour and then let him out there another half an hour to roll and sniff stuff while I worked another horse. Just to let him be a horse for a bit.

4/4/07 Rode him on the flat in the arena and, after warmup, worked on prompt halts. Did some jumping and some lateral work too. Active day and he did very well.

4/2/07 He'd had a few days off so I longed him to take the edge off. They are cordoned off in smaller paddocks right now so that the pastures don't get torn up, which means that they don't burn off energy fooling around in the pasture. He looked great on the longe and went well undersaddle. We did a lot of trot and canter work and he was very well balanced and loosened in his back and felt good.

3/30/07 Longed him and did flatwork. Went very well. Raining out and footing quite wet. Intended to take him to Longview Horse Park to school this weekend, but it is very wet there too. Rats. Plan to go down next Saturday or Sunday.

3/28/07 Rode out with a friend around the property. He was quite good, leading past the "scary piece of plastic" and the hay bales with the tarp blowing in the breeze. After some walk, trot and canter warm up, he easily jumped the railroad tie jumps, which were three in a row pyramids of rail road ties about 2' high. No hesitation and he had lots of fun doing it. Looking forward to our first proper xc school soon.

3/27/07 Took him on his first outdoor hack. He was very good. He went past the scary blue plastic bag of horse eating goblins with only a passing glance and was very happy to be out. Past the covered round bales and a bunch of horse trailers without much comment. Nice start.

3/25/07 Worked on flatwork and he did very well.

3/24/07 Set up some jumps and after a warmup did the crossrail and the vertical. Also set up his first oxer which he jumped big the first time, but he had no hesitation. Very brave. Good day.

3/22/07 Longed Cielo just to give him a chance to stretch his legs. They are out in the mud and don't get much of a chance to really move. So I got out of his way and let him do it. He looks fabulous.

3/20/07 Patsy and Zach came out to watch Cielo work. We warmed up with some longeing and flatwork which went fine. Then on to jumping the cross rail, which he did quite dramatically the first few times. But on subsequent effots he relaxed and then we moved it up (with the wonderful assistance of Denise) to 2', 2'3" and finally 2'6". We think he jumped the 2'6" best. We closed with cantering the vertical, stopping, doing a quarter turn, picking up the other lead and half-circling and then jumping it and repeating. His canter departs are becoming very balanced. He did very well.

3/19/07 I anticipated that he would be fresh today since he had the weekend off, so I longed him first. He was very good right away when I mounted. We did a flatwork review which went well. Back to jumping tomorrow.

3/16/07 Warmed up on the flat and then went over the cross rail. That went well, so I moved it back up to about 2' and jumped it a few times. At the end we did jump, halt a few strides later, turn on haunches right, canter left, circle, jump. Opposite turn and canter depart on the other side. He did very well.

3/14/07 Warmed up with some flatwork and then on to jumping. We trotted the crossrail in a figure eight pattern, taking at an angle. Then I raised it up to about 2 feet and jumped it from a steady canter. He did very well, jumping it in a relaxed manner and in stride.

3/13/07 He was quite exuberant today as were a lot of horses. The springlike weather has put a spring in their step! After some transition work he came around nicely and produced some nice trot and canter work.

3/11/07 Worked in the arena on the lunge and had a lesson with a contact who may be able to help market him. He was excellent as we worked on her position. He relaxed and went really well. He was relaxed through all the odd contortions she was doing to learn things about her position. Very good.

3/5/07 Had a good jumping session over the cross rail in a figure eight. More relaxed, good rhythm, held the line better. All this ground work will pay off in spades. Height is simple when the basics are right.

3/4/07 After a warm up we did a trot figure 8 over the cross rail so that he had to jump the obstacle on an angle and hold his line and rhythm. It is a deceptively difficult exercise and he got better and better and more relaxed as we went on. Very good.

3/3/07 Worked in the arena and had some very nice work, especially on yielding in the poll. We jumped the cross rail a few times, focusing on staying relaxed. He did excellently.

2/27/07 Warmed up on the flat and then jumped a cross rail and an 18" vertical. He has a very balanced canter and he is figuring how to adjust himself for the distance to teh base of the fence nicely. Very good day.

2/26/07 He was inside all weekend because of the ice and snow storm, so he was a little happy to go today. Spent the first few minutes just letting him move on at a trot and get some energy out, poor guy. Then moved on to jumping and worked a bit on jumping at an angle and keeping a straight line. He did very well.

2/22/07 Warmed up with some trot work and then some canter work. Trotted a cross rail until he was so relaxed about it that he landed in trot instead of canter. Then worked on the trot rhythm staying the same after the fence as before. Did well. Then we cantered it and had several dramatic bad distances (that is what learning is all about) followed by some very balanced, calm, confident good efforts. Very good!

2/21/07 Longed him to warm up on the flat and then over a jump. Started out small and by the end were doing about 2' confidently and nearly relaxed. excellent.

2/16/07 Rode him on the flat since we now jumped three times in a row and I wanted him to just settle into his flatwork for a day. He did very well.

2/14/07 My working student rode Speck and I rode Cielo in the ring at the same time. The two horses are great friends in the pasture and at about the same stage in their jumping training so it was good to work them together. Horses absolutely do learn from each other. We set up a ground rail9' in front of a small cross rail and by the end of the day they were cantering it pretty well. Need to repeat the lesson a few times to increase confidence, but a very very nice start to jumping under saddle.

2/11/07 Longed him again over a jump with a placing pole in front of it. He did very well and is starting to relax and enjoy it. Very good.

2/10/07 I lunged him at a trot and canter over the small vertical, just letting him figure it out and relax more. He got better and better.

2/9/07 Set up a small jump about 6" in the middle of the ring and you'd think it was haunted. He was pretty scared of it, but figured it out after a while and we ended up trotting over it in both directions. Very good.

2/8/07 Warmed up in trot which went well. Then some canter work and laid some poles on the ground to start the jumping skills. We did a big figure 8 with simple changes of lead between the efforts. He got a little excited, but did excellently in his striding over the poles, which is really the point of the exercise. Very good!

2/5/07 He warmed up very nicely and we had some very good work in all three gaits. He is starting to relax over his back in trot, especially after he warms up. When he is coming across his back he is a lovely mover. Canter getting stronger too.

2/2/07 Had a very nice school that we got on videotape. Hunt ball tomorrow so I won't have time to edit it until Sunday or so, but when I do, it will be posted here.

2/1/07 He was a little slow to warm up, probably due to the cold, but he came around nicely and did some very nice trot and canter work. His relaxation is coming along as well as his balance. We will videotape him tomorrow.

1/29/07 He was a little energetic today, but he always is when he has a few days off. After his warm up he had some very nice work in trot and canter. Spiral in/out in trot, starting to relax his neck in canter. He is occasionally even coming over his back. The lesson about staying relaxed in his throatlatch that we talked about on Friday carried nicely over to today. Great.

1/26/07 He warmed up well and went well today. I spent some time working on the quality of downward transitions, of him accepting the bit and using his hind end to stop. Had some very good progress in that skill today. We introduced walk canter transitions today which he did extremely well with. At the end I did some very nice trot stretch work and some canter stretch. This was a very good day. He is coming along very well.

1/24/07 He warmed up much more quickly today and we had some nice trot work. He is starting to come over his back and into the bridle, which is excellent. Had our best canter work to date today. Much more relaxed. Woohoo.

1/23/07 He warmed up very nicely and with some lateral work and some trot work. His left bend is a lot harder than his right. Learning to go to the right rein. Had some canter work which was a little fast, but circles helped encourage him to slow down and relax. Did some lateral work at the end, asking him to stretch in his neck. He worked very hard tonight and did well.

1/19/07 He warmed up very nicely and went to the outsider rein pretty well right from the start. We did a lot of flexibility work with spiral in and out in trot and a good amount of canter work, in which he took some nice deep breaths. Very good.

1/17/07 He looked better on the longe line today right off the bat. I got on and we worked on going to the outside rein in trot circles with spiral in and out. Some canter work. All went very well. Cooled down with some halt from walk work, focusing on yielding in the poll.

1/15/07 Warmed him up on the longe in light of his warming up a little slow on Friday. He looked pretty good on the line, but just a little bit short. His right hind fetlock is a little inflamed. His unsoundenss is very slight and intermittent, so I am not worried. It seems to be of the "pasture bonk" variety. We longed and then I rode him, mostly at a walk and trot, just asking him to relax and come over his back. He did very well and felt even underneath me.

1/12/07 He was just a little short in his striding when I got off him last time, so I longed him first today to see how he would go. He was a little short still. It was hard to tell if he was sore in back or front, but at any rate he worked out of it on the longe line. We did a lot of trot and canter work to help him strengthen up and then called it a day.

1/10/07 Mounted up and walked around, letting him relax. When I started to trot, he seemed a little off, so Katie checked his hooves and he had a little stick in the frog of his left front. We took it out and put him on the longe to watch him and he was just fine. Got on and did some trot and canter work and some work over cavaletti and he did very well. He is not very strong over his topline yet, but he gets stronger all the time. He'll get tomorrow off since he has worked hard three days in a row.

1/9/07 He warmed up much better today. I think I will longe him a bit to warm up when he has had a few days off. At any rate, we did some work on staying relaxed in the poll through downward transitions and a lot of work on spiraling in and out in trot on a cirlce and then transitions to canter from spiral out. By the end he had some very nice forward relaxed work. He's a star.

1/8/07 He was a little tight in warmup, as he seems to be after a few days off. But by the end we had some more relaxed trot work and some pretty decent canter transitions. The canter has moments of real balance followed by a bit of rushing. A balance and strength issue that is resolving.

1/5/07 Day off after three days of pretty hard work. I went out and fed him some cookies and talked with him. He's doing fine.

1/4/07 Today we set up cavaletti, and after a warm up worked over them. He did very well with it, no hesitation and nice rhythm. His canter work was by turns good and very good, with trot work coming a little more through. He is pretty inconsistent in his contact with the bit, but he has moments of coming into a very good way of going. He had some very good stretch in trot and canter, which is very very exciting, and exactly what he needs to be doing.

1/3/07 Brought him in and worked on the flat. Katie was there to watch him go. She hadn't seen him in a month and remarked on his new musculature and more relaxed way of going. We did a lot of canter work and had some very relaxed trot work, interspersed with some bracing of the neck, which is becoming less frequent. Very good.

1/2/07 Brought him in and tacked up, no lockup. Yay. Got on and did some walk work and trot work, which was a little tense. I had to stop to talk to the barn manager about a few things, and I sat on Cielo just standing there as I did that. When I started back to work after about 5 minutes of standing, he was much calmer and more relaxed. He had some very nice trot work, coming over his back and into the bridle and breathing. This is so important and just excellent. Then we had some canter work in both directions which is getting better, especially the transitions into and out of the gait, which I am making off circles. He is getting stronger and more relaxed. Cooled down with some lateral work which went well. Fabulous.

12/31/06 We warmed up with some trot work which went very well. Then some canter work which is by turns relaxed and not so much, but the relaxed is becoming more common, which is great. We warmed down with some trot lateral work which went swimmingly. I am very pleased with how he is progressing. He had some very nice breathing today in trot, which is a huge thing. Lifestyle note: the weather outside was miserable today so he spent the day in his stall as did all the horses. That was just fine with him considering the rain and spitting snow outside his door.

12/30/06 There were jumps in all the corners of the arena, set there for storage. He was not sure about whether or not lions lived under them so I had several teachable moments in getting him to listen to my leg even when he is distracted, which is a wonderful thing to practice before starting jumping. He did well and settled in after a while. Had some very nice canter work and not bad trot work.

12/29/06 Got on and warmed up with some trot work including a lot of circles. Then on to cantering with a fair bit of transitions, which went rather well. Then we had a few discussions about shying at the jumps that were new in the corners of the arena. It was a very teachable moment about getting off the inside leg when asked to. It required an open-handed swat on the butt once, which he tolerated and it certainly got the point across because he did much better. Warmed down with some lateral work which went well. Woohoo.

12/28/06 He'd had several days off due to the Christmas holiday, so after grooming I longed him. He had one lockup on the way out to the arena, but looked very good on the longe. I mounted up and warmed up with some bending and flexibility work which went well. We went on to trot to walk to trot transitions which are coming along, but there is plenty to do as he wants to grab the left rein and brace. The trick is to simply let go of the rein they lean on so that there is nothing to lean against until they figure out how to stop without the leaning crutch. It is coming. Then on to trot leg yield which helps him get connected front to back. Then on to right lead canter which went very well, and left lead canter which was a bit tense, but coming. Very good.

12/22/06 We started with a walk warmup which went well, very relaxed and stretching forward and down. Then on to trot work, asking him to come over his back and down to the bit, which is hard for him at this stage, but he is getting the hang of it. Wants to tighten up and lug occasionally, but I just release and he realizes there is nothing to lock against and lets go. We did some work on "whoa" with the help of the wall. Just trotting back and forth across the short side of the arena, asking him softly to halt at at about the quarter line and letting the wall do the stopping if he doesn't do it by himself. This is all done calmy and quietly, not a big drama, and he is starting to figure out how to balance himself to stop, which is the crux of the difficulty. We did a fair amount of canter work and amazingly, he forgot his left lead briefly, probably due to all the right lead work we have been doing. Near the end of the time we were doing some trot leg yield and he got a little frazzled (raised his head a bit and locked his jaw), took a look in the corner and finally noticed the jump that was there against the wall. He shied at it, spun and did a short bolt and I almost came off at the quick spin. I was laughing so hard at the ludicrous idea of him shying at a jump he has gone by 30 times if not more and my almost biffing because of it. He calmed down very quickly but he was still pretty concerned that a monster lived under that jump. Funny pony! We did some more trot work to get him settled and he really had some nice work coming over his back into contact. That is huge. Much praise. Walk warm down and done.

12/21/06 Brought hiim in, tacked up and got on without longeing. He was pretty relaxed about that. We did some walking to warm up. There was another horse working in the ring and he was ok with that. We did a lot of canter work and he is definitely gettting stronger and more relaxed. Trot work went well, including cavaletti. He gets a little tense sometimes, but is starting to stretch in his neck to the bit more frequently. Very good!

12/20/06 Quite nasty out with about 37 degrees and rain. I brought him in about 2 p.m. when I got to the barn and he was wet and cold. I don't mind horses being out in the weather even when it is bad for a while and that was about enough. I brought him in and longed him gently for a bit to help him warm up and then put a cooling blanket on him while I went out and checked some outside horses. By the time I got back in, Cielo was pleasantly warm and happy. I took his blanket off and let him enjoy his supper.

12/18/06 A bit of a cooler day, but life is always good in the heated indoor! We longed for a bit to warm up and he was looking good. I would like him to put on more weight, but he is certainly putting on muscles, so I'd rather have that than just adding fat. I mounted up and we did a lot of trot work, asking him to stretch over his back. He started out pretty up in his neck with his back dropped, but came around nicely. We had some good lateral work and some nice canter work. His balance is coming along and he gets stronger all the time.

12/15/06 Another nice day. Weird! I know when the snow and cold comes I will not be acclimated at all. Drat! I brought him in and groomed him. He is still quite thin, but the muscle is coming and I'd rather have him put on muscle weight than fat weight any day, so I don't mind the slower weight gain. He had been goofing off in the pasture so I decided to forego the longeing warmup and just get on and ride. That went fine. We did a lot of trot work, including working over caveletti and as much or more canter work than we have ever done. He is starting to relax more in the canter, slow down, breathe and come over his back which is huge. He had a nice stretch down in trot too, the importance of which can not be overstated. Very good day, weekend off.

12/14/06 Extremely mild out, 64, but windy, so I opened up the doors to the arena and rode him inside. He was a little funny going past the doors the first few times, especially since they were cleaning up a manure pile with a skid loader just outside one of them, but he dealt with it with pretty good humour. We had some difficulty in the beginning as he was tense in his back and tight. After a walk and trot warmup, I sent him over the caveletti and it was like he remembered that stretching over his back was the thing to do. It was much better after that. We did a fair amount of canter work in each direction, some trot leg yielding and introduced shoulder in, which came easily to him, though it is pretty wobbly yet, but still pretty impressive. All this flexibility stuff relates directly to strengthening him and to jumping skills. He didn't have one lockup today.

12/12/06 Today the weather started out nice, but was turning cooler and windier in the afternoon when I came out to work him. He let me catch him much more easily to come into the warm barn. Brought him in and tacked up, with no locking at any point. Warmed him up on the longe line and did some cavaletti on the longe and he did great. Mounted up and he felt very good. We had our most physically challenging workout so far today, with a lot of trotting and flexibility exercises including leg yield, circles, serpentines and cavaletti. He did very well on all of it. We did several transitions to each lead in canter with just short sessions of canter, maybe a circle and a half each time, but lots of transitions between gaits. We warmed down with some walk halt and trot walk halt transitions. He did extremely well. He'll get tomorrow off to let his muscles rest.

12/11/06 Ha! Today he decided that he felt too good to let me catch him, so for about 5 minutes I got to follow him around the pasture. I think I better get more cookies! After grooming and tacking up, I longed him and he looked very well. I got on and we did a lot of trot work and flexibility exercises and did several canter transitions. That has a long way to go, but it is improving steadily. We did some cavaletti work which went very well. We had a nice walk cool out. Good!

12/8/06 Brought him in and longed him. He did have a few minor lock ups (one when I caught him and one when I turned him around after grooming) but better than yesterday. He looked great on the longe, a little more balanced in canter. Then I got on and did a lot of trot work and a reasonable amount of canter. Later in the session we were doing leg yield to the wall and then a canter depart and had some very nice canter work. It is coming along. We also walked and trotted 4 cavaletti (poles on the ground about 4' apart) which he did very well over. It is a good strengthening exercise for his stifles too. Next time I ride him I can spread them out a little more, now that he has the hang of it. Good boy.

12/7/06 I worked in the arena when Laura was working her horse. Cielo did just fine with the distraction. When I brought him in from the pasture, he had been eating at the round bale. When I led him away his right hind stifle locked. He came out of it just fine. I warmed him up on the longe line and he looked very good, though a little unbalanced (not unusual) in canter. I got on and did a lot of turning and flexibility things in trot and transitions to walk and halt. We did leg yield, which is really coming along and should help continue to strengthen him. Very good. He grinds his teeth when he is thinking really hard, but once he figures it out, he stops. My goal is eventually to have him so relaxed and confident that he stops grinding all together. It may or may not happen, but that is the intention. I introduced him to two poles on the ground today, which is the beginning work for jumping. First have to teach them where to put their feet... At the end Laura and I walked our horses around together. Cielo got a little snotty to the other horse, but he got better as time went on, with less laying his ears back. It is just a confidence thing. He's a good boy.

12/5/06 Brought him and and did just enough longeing to get him warmed up. Then in the tack for a walk on a loose rein and then a lot of trot work. We did a lot of flexibility and steering things focusing on bringing his right hip forward (bending to the right) which is hard for him (because horses are not naturally ambidextrous). He tried very hard. He has to think about bending that way, but he is game to try and he made some nice strides. We had some very nice walk and trot leg yield both ways. To the right is a piece of cake and he just floats, left is harder and he carries himself pretty well, but you can almost hear the gears in his head turning. We had some right lead canter today, that was a little hairy, but it will come as he gets better at bending right. (When a horse does a left leg yield, he bends his body right, which is also what he does in right lead canter. That is why the left leg yield and right lead are more difficult. Just not used to bending that way.) It is coming along quickly. He's a very good boy.

12/4/06 That he'd had a few days off showed up when I put him on the longe line. When we first got to canter I got a buck! Not a huge one, and more playful than naughty, so I just had to laugh. When I got on he stood pretty well (took a step or two, which we need to stop in future). We did a lot of trot work, including asking him to bend his body around to the right, ribcage left. This was hard for him, but he was willing to try and did quite well. We did a lot of serpentines and then went on to walk legyield. He did exceptionally well, so much that we did a few steps of trot legyield in both directions too. What a talented, willing horsie.

11/28/06 Patsy and Beverly came out to play with Cielo. We brought him in, fed him carrots, groomed and then longed, which went well. Then I mounted up and rode and we had good success in walk trot and canter. Today was his first canter on his right lead under saddle and it went really quite well. A little stiff, but willing. We worked on sidepassing and he was a little stuck to the left, but with some help from Patsy we got it and ended on a good note. Lots of fun.

11/27/06 Not quite nice enough to choose the outdoor today, but pretty nice anyway. Warmed up with longing and then got on without assistance from the ground. (Heretofore I had had someone holding him.) He stood very well. Good boy. We did a lot of trot work, focusing and turning and flexibility and balance in the trot and it went very well. We even worked in the arena with another person longeing in half of it and he was mostly unfazed. (Once the other horse bucked and he was not approving of that!) We worked on sidepassing and he did very well, however, his stifle did lock up once. Then we did some more trot and also some canter to the left. This is the first canter off the longe line and after the initial tension, it went well. We did another set of sidepassing and were done for the day. Very good!

11/26/06 Yet another beautiful day, so after grooming we (Jay the wonder husband was along) went out to the outdoor. He walked right past the stallion who was goofing off and behaved amazingly well. We longed in the outdoor and he was a littlel goofy, did have a minor buck into the canter transition, but it was mostly just having had a few days off and feeling good. After he was all warmed up I got on and continued work on bending and flexibility and balance at the trot and things are coming along. Then Jay helped with a little sidepassing, and after the first try, Cielo did it off of only my cues. Very good!

11/22/06 Another blue ribbon day. Warmed up with longing in the outdoor. He looked very good right from the start, but his right lead canter was not quite as good as yesterday. It will come and go until he is really strong, but it was still better than it was. Mounted up with the help of Katie, my working student, and he was quite good. Did a lot of trot work, with bending and turning and asking him to come forward in his neck and bring his back up, with some success. Katie and I introduced sidepassing and he did very well for day one. Smart boy.

11/21/06 Just a smashing beautiful day so I took him out to the outdoor for our first session outside. Longed to warm up and he was quite interested in his surroundings and a little up. After a few minutes he settled down. His right lead canter continues to improve, though it is interesting to note that he always picks up his left first and then does a flying change over to the right. I mounted and we walked around a bit to let him look closely at things (risers, flags, other horses in nearby paddocks) and then we did a lot of trot work with much turning and serpentines. He did very well, though I note that to to right he wants to twist his head, which makes me think about floating again. Now that we have the stifles coming around (no locks today or yesterday!) I think it is time for the floating. Patsy, you should come out and watch him work. He's starting to be something to look at. I will teach you to longe too!

11/20/06 Worked him in the evening in the indoor where there was another horse being worked. I was interested to see how he would respond to that. He was unimpressed. We longed to warm up and he looked very good, starting to develop some muscle over his hindquarters and his right lead canter is much better. (Almost amazingly better.) After that I got on and rode him around at a walk and trot, doing figures and teaching him how to respond to the bit. He is very willing to learn, but it has to be said that he knows almost nothing about anything other than going in mostly straight lines, but that is all he needed at the track, so no problem for him then. He got a little quick in trot a few times, but he also spent a good deal of time relaxing and breathing and stretching through his body, which is excellent. We want the tendency always to be toward relaxation. He also did very well with the automatic garage doors being opened and closed while I was mounted. Just a little startle and then back to relaxation. Very good.

11/17/06 Katie longed him yesterday and reported that he is looking so much better. Put on a little weight (still some to go) and looking much more even behind, less locking of stifle. The blistering agent will have some effect for a month, so until that month is up, we will reserve judgement and see much he continues to improve. Today I warmed him up on the longe and he looked very good right from the start. After a few minutes, Katie took over the longe line and I got on. We walked and trotted on the longe in both directions which went very well. His steering is pretty crude, but he is a good boy and tries to please. After we reversed directions again back to the left, we cantered a few times, which went well. Mind you, he did sort of scoot off into it and I think with a less than confident rider it could have accelerated from there, be it was a very good start. We didn't canter to the right because he is stil pretty weak in that direction. We'll continue to work on that on the longe without a rider. After that we walked around a while working on turning. He needs a lot of help with that, but this is typical of off track guys (I love 'em!) and he's a quick study, so it should be fun to help him understand.

11/15/06 Longed for 22 minutes and he was looking quite good at the end. Canter work to left very good, to right somewhat improved, which is great. Just a little improvement each day adds up over time. Wonderful.

11/14/06 Brought him in and longed him for 20 minutes. He was a little stiff at the beginning but worked out to be nearly even by the end. His trot work, after the warmup, is no longer painful to watch and he is recovering his spring. He canters quite well to the left, but right is harder for him (typical of track horses, who have spent their early life cantering left only) and when he canters left, something is making a noise, or at least it did today. I will see if it recurs tomorrow. Trots very well right, though.

11/13/06 I longed him for 20 minutes. After a walk warm up we did some trotting and spent most of the time in trot with a few short walk breaks. He is closer to even, but not quite there yet. I'd say he is on track. We even did some short canter work which went well. Encouraging day.

11/11-12/06 Katie, my working student longed him both days. She remarked that he looked improved on Sunday.

11/10/06 Longed him 20 minutes in the morning. He is starting to look better, but remains a 3 of 5 on the lameness scale. On track.

11/9/06 I longed him in the late afternoon for a longer period of time after a walk warm up. He is still quite sore, but by the end there was noticeable improvement in a slightly freer gait. Yay!

11/8 I longed him in the morning for 10 minutes and in the afternoon for 12. He is an incredibly willing horse. It hurts a lot for him to trot, but he will try. I have to require him to come down to walk after a few minutes so that he doesn't overdo it.

11/7/06 I went out to see how he was doing in the morning and he was very sore, as he should be, but still not fun to watch. I petted him and played with him for a while and he seems to be in excellent spirits and ate all his food. I took him out and longed him, first at a walk for a nice slow warm up. Then a few minutes of trot, which is just ugly to watch, but he is so game that he just keeps going if you ask him to. Then we did some walking in the other direction, same deal. He was just so good and I told him how brave he is. I came back out in the evening for another longe session. It is important to keep him moving through this. He is out in the pasture during the day and a young girl at the barn said that he followed her around in the pasture, so he was moving around some at least. Wonderful.

11/6/06 I gave Cielo the last several days off knowing that he was going to the chiropractor today. When Al looked at him he wanted the vet there on site to look at him. When Brad Gordon looked at him, he of course, notice the locking stifle right away and we discussed blistering his stifles. While Cielo's left locks worse, his right is very weak. Here is some very good information on blistering:

• Intraligamentous Infusion of Counterirritant: This form of therapy is usually referred to as "blistering". Blistering involves the inject of an irritative substance into soft tissue(s) in an attempt to create an inflammatory reaction. The irritative substance usually consists of iodine 2% in an almond oil base. This substance can elicit an inflammatory response for up to 30 days depending on the amount used and the location of injection. It is important to remember that fibrosis and scar tissue formation within normal soft tissues will occur as a result of severe inflammation. As you know, scar tissue does not function like normal soft tissue. Therefore, blistering in certain areas may inhibit proper function of associated soft tissue. It is for this reason that The Atlanta Equine Clinic typically does not institute blistering as typical form of treatment for soft tissue problems.

However, in the case of intermittent upward patellar fixation, we gain a biomechanical advantage by replacing normal tissue with scar tissue. The infusion of counterirritant within and around the medial and middle patellar ligaments results in the elicitation of an intense inflammatory reaction by the horse’s body. With inflammation, fibrosis and scarring of the patellar ligaments occur. During the scarring process, soft tissues will contract (shorten). As the patellar ligaments shorten, the patella is pulled up and over the hook of the medial femoral trochlea and into its normal position within the trochlear groove. At this point, it becomes more difficult for the horse to lock the patella and easier to flex the pelvic limb from an extended position. In our hands, this from of treatment has been extremely effective in a vast majority of cases involving intermittent upward patellar fixation.

So we had that done and now Cielo is to be worked at least once a day at a walk and trot for the next ten days and then Brad will call or I will call him. I was advised that he may be uncomfortable tomorrow morning, but that it is important that he move. Al also adjusted his neck and point of hip which were out of whack. He said his shoulders were unusually good and he'd probably make a nice jumper because of it. I will longe him in the morning and we'll see what we have.

11/1/06 He was resting in his paddock looking relaxed when I got to the barn. While grooming he was a little distracted, but settled down. I lunged him to warm up and he looked very good and behaved very well. With my working student, Katie's help, I got on and walked him around the arena. In the first step away from the mounting block his stifle locked and he had to take a step back to unlock. No problem, but it is disconcerting to ride both from a physical and emotional standpoint. I know it can't feel good to him. Because the stifle usually locks only when going from halt to walk, we didn't do a lot of walk halts, which I usually do on the off track or green guys. At any rate, he was relaxed for the most part on our walk around the arena. Katie walked by his side and had a lead on him just in case he got nervous or silly. After a time we put him on the lunge line and I walked and trotted him around. He started to relax in his back a little bit, which is very nice. He is trying to figure out what I am asking with a little contact on the bit, and during the process, he stuck his tongue out remarkably far several times. Just thinking! During the session he dropped his penis down, which is pretty unusual. He was not acting studdy or naughty at all, which is sometimes the case when horses do that. Katie and I have both heard of horses who had chiropractic issues that exhibited somewhat similar behavior. Finished the session with an introduction to sidepassing which went well. He is a very cooperative, willing horse.

10/31/06 His fetlock looks fine and has for a few days. Tonight I brought him in to his new stall and he seems to appreciate it. Tomorrow he will go out in a paddock and in a day or two out with a new band of geldings. I think the stall will be perfect for him for the cooler weather. He should get lots of turnout but still have uninterrupted access to his own food and restful warm sleep at night.

10/27/06 Lovely day. Brought him in and he was much more comfortable than yesterday. However, he had a slightly warm and swollen right hind fetlock. I hosed it for 20 minutes while he ate some grain. The swelling came down nicely and I'd expect he'd be back in work by tomorrow.

10/26/06 It had been raining in the morning and around 50 degrees. Despite the fact that they have shelter to go into, they chose not to, and even when I went out to ride him after the rain had stopped and he was mostly dry, he was still slightly shivering. He got pretty cold all the way through. I made sure they got a brand new round bale to munch as having hay can really help keep them warm. I lunged him at a walk and trot until he was warm through and then did some canter work. He started to come over his back and through his neck instead of his usual MO of having his neck raised. It went very well. I gave him some extra grain before turning him out and he said he felt much better. We should probably consider a winter blanket for him or putting him on full board in a stall 16 hours a day and out at pasture for 8. I think I'd prefer getting him a blanket and leaving him out to move around, but either would probably be acceptable.

10/24/06 Brought him in from the pasture. He seems to be enjoying himself, has become part of the little group of 4. He was easy to catch and well behaved for leading in. He wants to get a little pushy while being held for grooming, but he is allowing us to pick up all his feet, including the left hind, which is the stifle that gives him the most trouble. It is still locking appreciably, but Rome wasn't built in a day. We fitted a bridle with a french link snaffle and a dressage saddle and lunged him in loose sidereins. He started out looking a little uneven in back, which makes me wonder about underlying issues, but since he warmed up out of it and looked fine on other days, we'll let it ride a bit. He was well-behaved on the lunge and did some nice, if a little hurried, walk, trot and canter work. Good day there. When we feed him, he drops a lot of grain. Perhaps it is time for a floating?

10/23/06 I went out each day over the weekend to catch him in the pasture and feed him some grain. Very good. Today we brought him in and lunged him. The stifle is still catching. He needs to have a lot more strength over his back before we ride him. We did some lunging in trot and canter and he was very good, even though going to the right seemed to be a new idea for him. Despite the new situation and being lunged in an arena with other horses, he was reasonably relaxed. Had a few moments of pretty good tension, but with some reassurance he came around.

10/20/06 Got it all straightened out at the other barn and took him over. Turned him out in a 5 acre paddock with 3 other geldings and they all cavorted around for a while and then there was peace in the kingdom. Wonderful to see him out galloping around. He'll get the weekend off to give him time to get used to walking around and being out and Monday we'll see how he feels. He looked great out there and I think they will all get along well. Plenty of room to get away if not and there is a nice big, high shelter for them from tomorrow's predicted rain.

10/19/06 Cielo is in a stall because, without a health certificate to get him to the other stable, the barn he as at now does not have a paddock that has appropriate fencing for his (really cute) antics at the moment. I will work with the other barn manager tomorrow and see if I need to call my vet to come out and do a HC, which I think is silly, but it is the other barn's policy. Their pastures, though, are just what he needs, so it would be worth it. He needs about a week out walking around to get stronger before he can be ridden. He trots and canters fine, but the walk, where I will be doing most of my work, will have a hitch in it for a while. Meanwhile I am getting him out to the indoor once or twice a day to let him move and he is improving already.

10/18/06 Did a lot of research on the internet about Upward Fixation of Patella (UFP) or locking stifle. There also was a vet at the barn just by chance today. She is a friend of mine and looked at him, partly to show a student she had with her, so that was nice. She said he is a textbook case for locking stifle because he has little muscling behind and is pretty straight in his stifle. She says with about 4 months of steady strengthening work he will likely come out of it. If not, there is a surgery to cut the medial patellar ligament that has a good prognosis. If no surgery, it will be something that will have to be managed for the rest of his life. If he is allowed to become unfit or kept in a box too much, the stifle will always be weak and it will lock. So today I let him self exercise in the arena. He did a fair amount of trotting and cantering about with some locking only in the beginning. I worked some other horses and then took him out in the arena again to let him move and he just calmly walked about. We just need to keep him moving a little more each day to start the strengthening. Here is a pretty good overview of UFP.

10/17/06 Met Patsy and Zach and after a chat, loaded Cielo up. Other than being a little tight on the lead out, he loaded beautifully. He trailered a little rough, some moving about in the trailer, but no real problem. Unloaded ok and then had a little romp around the indoor. He was very happy to move about. I readied his paddock and put him out in it. He was a wild thing, enough that he threatened to jump the fence twice, so I thought better than leaving him out there. I brought him back into the indoor and played a few leading games with him and asking him to put his neck down and relax and he did very well and started to tune in. His stifle was locking often and dramatically at a walk (but fine at a trot). I put him in a stall to rest for the night as he did plenty of moving about. I made an appointment for next Tuesday with Roy Kipper DVM to look at the stifle. I won't ride him before then, but we have plenty of ground work and focus issues to deal with until then.