Training Log for Turner Shagets

2/28/08 Fed him cookies and played with him. He gets the day off as he has a 6 hour trailer ride tomorrow. Going home. I wish I could have hunted him more, but this winter it was not to be. I feel really good about his flatwork and jumping fundamentals, though, the confidence he has gained around hounds in our few hunts together, and his attitude is above reproach. I'll miss his delightful self around, but I know he will be delighted to be hunting with Frank and living in milder weather.

2/27/08 Rode him in the indoor, working on some softness and flexibility things. He did quite well in that, so we moved on to trot work, leg yield, shoulder in etc. The canter work was right on right from the beginning of it. We did some jump schooling and he did well.

2/26/08 Worked in the arena on flexibility things and having him come through his body. He is a typical thoroughbred in that he is all about straight and forward, which is good, but some bend in his body and coming through from behind is good too. He did extremely well in leg yield and shoulder in work. Then we moved on to jumping cross rails, which he overjumped at first. He always jumps much better over natural obstacles than colored poles, which might be a good thing to remember. Some horses are like that. When I jumped him over the crossrail the first time, he made a big effort, but it just got better and better each time we went. He ended jumping them perfectly.

2/22/08 Warm enough for a hack out in the field so out we went. We worked on him staying soft in his poll and he did very well. Had some very nice trot work, despite deer popping out everywhere, and canter work was quite good too. He is very appreciative of the milder weather.

2/20/08 Above 20 degrees. Heat wave. Warmed up with walk work which was quite good, as was canter. Trot had some moments of tension (just tight in his neck), due mostly to exuberance. We had a very nice jump school and did a lot of jumping fences on angles and off center so that when things like that come up on the hunt, he will still know that he is to jump. He did very well with it. He has a lot of scope.

2/16/08 Hunted at Grand River. Quite nice weather and footing very good. It was a very small field, partly because the hunt was moved several times based on the forecast, which was changing dramatically throughout the week. Jay and Stacey Roberts and I were the field. This was extremely good for Turner because I could take the time to help him learn to relax about creek crossings and the other things we have been working on. We also got a chance to interact with the hounds a lot. When horses get a chance to observe the hounds close up, they start to relax about them. There were several times when the hounds were underfoot and Turner tolerated them well. One time, while hacking, Jay and I were relaxing and talking and I didn't notice a hound that had stopped. Rather than step on the hound which I was not steering around, Turner just politely stepped aside of it. I also carried a hound whip and several times dropped the lash to direct a hound and he was fine with that. One other time the lash got caught under his tail and while he didn't like it, he just clamped his tail and stood there, didn't through a fit as I have seen happen. I got off and got it out just fine. Here we are on the long hack to the west side of the country:

More hacking, before he saw the cows

When he noticed the cows...

Though he clearly thought the cows were from another planet, he passed by them very sanely. Here we are waiting for the cast after the hack out.

Stacey had some trouble getting her horse over and appreciably large-sized coop, so Turner and I gave her several leads. Turner was excellent, jumping from a trot and canter very well. Some of the creek crossings were much improved and a few early ones were somewhat anxious, but he is getting better on the whole. I put Eddie's eventing boots on him to protect his legs from sharp ice and we had a much better result than the last hunt at Grand River. Not one scratch. He was very good and it was a very positive outing for him.

2/14/08 Twenty degrees and snowing, but not bad in the indoor. I rode him while Jay rode Sangha, so we took turns working on lateral stuff and cantering. It was good for him to work and stand, work and stand, like we have to do so often on a hunt. He did well with both the work and the standing. Good boy.

2/13/08 Cold snap has abated, up to 19 today when I went out in the afternoon. Heat wave! Tacked up and warmed up in the arena with some flexibility things in walk and trot, then did some shoulder in, and leg yield in trot which is really coming along nicely, then did canter spiral in to one revolution of 12m canter circle and spiral back out. He did excellently in both directions. That is a pretty difficult exercise, involving both flexibility and strength.

2/8/08 Out into the wilderness for Turner. It was a lovely day so we went out and hacked around the big pasture a few times and then went for a hack in the woods where we encountered a lot of deer. He was excellent.

2/7/08 Worked in the arena, which went well. He was a little quiet to the aids today, but I think it was because I rode right around supper time. I did not make a big deal out of it as it is too easy to get these thoroughbreds to light off the leg and then you have to be really accurate at all times to ride them. A little dead to the leg in a thoroughbred foxhunter is a good thing. He did fine in all his work.

2/5/08 The farrier put a new shoe on his right hind and reset his left front which had been sprung. Turner has some swelling in that right hind, so I tacked up and got on with the intention of just seeing how he felt and getting him moving a bit to see if we could get the swelling to abate. He felt quite well, in fact, so after a warmup we did a diamond exercise which is good for getting their hind end underneath them and then did a lot of canter transitions, which went well. The swelling looked much better when I got off.

2/4/08 Brought him in and treated his cuts with aloe heal. They are drying up nicely, but I don't mind giving him the day off. Tomorrow morning the farrier comes out to replace the lost shoe and probably trim and reset all the way around. He is a very good farrier, so I always let him make the decision on exactly what to do.

2/2/08 Hunted at Grand River. He was a little light on his feet for opening announcements, but moved off nicely with the group. We directed some hounds off a deer carcass early in the hunt, and Turner left the group nicely and came back to the group with confidence. The first hour of the hunt was fairly slow and he and a lot of other horses were a bit impatient, but he remained polite. He was a pill about the ditch crossings in that he wanted to rush across rather than step quietly. The good news is that he always indicated that he was going--he never offered to hesitate. However, style matters and he did improve throughout the day to the point where his last three crossings were quite acceptable. The footing was a little iffy, but he managed quite well and jumped fine with the notable exception of jumping from the cattle pasture back in to Hickman's where he overjumped to such an extent as to be breathtaking. He always says yes to any request, and his only question is "how high?" and on this particular jump he had plenty of room over the top of it. His alacrity is to be commended, but also perhaps toned down, which will come with experience. He just has a huge engine and nearly limitless athleticism, which is never a bad thing. After about 2 hours I hacked in with a group, and when we were nearing the trailers, the hounds came over the hill, hot on a line and well ahead of Ken, with no whip in sight. I took a chance that going with the hounds to watch over their welfare would be appreciated by Ken. Turner was fabulous. He left the trailers and his friends and took me on a delightful trek across several hills and a ditch crossing as we went with the hounds. It was great fun and Ken perceived it as a good thing for me to do, so that was gratifying. The wrath of the huntsman is something I like to avoid. We had a quiet hack in after the hounds checked.

1/31/08 Tacked him up and brought him into the indoor. He is getting better about walking in a relaxed manner with his neck down while being led. His walk and trot work was excellent today, and we did some leg yielding and shoulder in in warm up which went well. Canter work was quite good. He has a fabulous canter, especially when he is directed with weight and leg aids along with rein aids. He is getting to be quite balanced and I think he thinks the exercises we do are fun. Today we put a pole on the ground and cantered tight, balanced turns to it, and took it at angles. He was playing with adjusting his distance to it and he did very well.

1/29/08 Nice weekend, but a cold front came through with a vengeance today. At noon when I went out to check on them it was 6 degrees and NW winds ramping up. Most of the other horses were ok, but Turner, even in his snugly blanket, was starting to shiver and was diligently searching the ground where they distribute hay in the morning for any schniblets that might be left over. I fed him a cookie and he very eagerly took it where he is usually so very polite. I brought him in and fed him some hay and warm water. He ate greedily and stopped shivering quickly. You may have experienced that this is pretty common for many thoroughbreds in winter. They just don't do that well in the cold where other horses might do just fine. There is nothing wrong with him as an individual in this regard. My three tbs were inside all day and when I turned them out while I did some things in the barn, they all just waited by the door to get back in, while the warmblood went out foraging in the cold wind like there was no problem.

1/27/08 Hunted at Grand River. Will wonders never cease? It was lovely to be out and the footing was much improved in southern Iowa over what we have here in central parts of the state. He was a little sticky about loading, but only to the extent that Jay had to cluck to him to get on as I led him in. He hauled and unloaded well and stood for grooming and tacking well. He was a little more mobile about mounting than I like, so we discussed it a bit and he improved. He stood well for opening remarks and moved off well with the group. A lot of other horses were bucking from freshness when we moved off. He did not buy into that and was well behaved. The first part of the hunt was fits and starts and he handled it well. It is hard on horses when things start out that way, but he did well. That lasted for about an hour then we had a check and he stood beautifully at it. Love that. Then we were recruited to whip which was great as I was interested to see how he would do. He was just slightly unsure about leaving the field, which is understandable since he had been with them all day. But once he was "unhooked" he did great. (Oh, I forgot to mention that during a check, a hound ran right underneath his back legs and he knew it was there and did not kick. Very good.) We went to the point of the woods and watched the hounds work toward us and he was interested and stood well. He did let out one unsure quiet whinny early in the program, but did not repeat. The hounds came through the woods and got on scent going west. Ken was on a greenish horse to jumping so Turner and I gave him a lead over a coop off a 90 degree turn in the snow and Turner performed beautifully. I was unsurprised but delighted with him. We had to cross some ditchy terrain to keep up with the hounds (Ken's horse did not perform as beautifully over the coop and they were a while re-presenting, so it was up to us to catch up with the hounds) and Turner was excellent. The hounds, it turned out, were running heel so they were becoming uncommitted to the line when we caught up with them, otherwise, I don't know what horse would have caught them with the lead they had. One hound got through and we had to make a quick dash for the road and Turner was up for that and trotting down the road (gravel, moderately soft with snowmelt) at an impressive clip. We turned the hound back and rejoined the field. Then we got on a tear of a run going east. That's a pretty fast horse and I found myself checking a lot to not pass Monte, who I had the delightful experience of galloping with as he urged his horse on and Turner just cruised effortlessly at the same pace. Were it not for fieldmaster's and MFH's rights and my fondness for Monte, we might have made him a fading memory in our rearview mirror. After that run I retired Turner as it had been a fairly hard hunt and he had performed excellently. On the last part of the last run he was pulling a fair amount. I find that, with horses with a lot of tb blood in them, if they start to pull harder and they have been out hunting a while and working, it means that they are getting tired. It is counter-intuitive, but I've seen it a lot. He had every right as we'd covered a fair bit of country and a lot of it at speed. The field was back in 20 minutes anyway.

1/24/08 Flatwork warmup which went very well. Leg yield and canter departs are coming along. Then a jumping review with the barrel. He is learning to step under himself to adjust. Jay was there watching and said his canter is better and reminded me of an exercise that would be good for Turner which I will do next session and tell you about. That Jay is so smart! :-)

1/22/08 Check the training day! Jay was out to ride another horse, so I asked him to ride Turner for a bit to see how Turner would go for someone who doesn't ride exactly like me. He warmed him up and put Turner through his paces at walk, trot and canter and it went swimmingly. Then I got on and did some more flatwork and flexibility things. Very good.

1/21/08 During the cold snap over the weekend I checked on him frequently and he is doing fine. He is at a nice weight for a thoroughbred in winter and seems happy. Today we did flatwork and flexibility things including shoulder in and leg yield in walk and trot which went well. Canter work was quite good as well. The hunt looks to be on for Saturday. Fingers crossed.

1/17/08 Pretty cold out, but an indoor is a wonderful thing. Footing quite good. We did a lot of flatwork and I didn't intend to jump, but the flatwork, which started out a little tight, wound up quite acceptable and then we were cantering and he was so balanced and there was that jump in the arena just beckoning. It went perfectly the first time. Big praise and done for the day. He will have his blanket on 24/7 during the cold snap the next few days. The forecast looks like I won't be in the tack again until Monday at the earliest. Wah.

1/16/08 Lots of flatwork today, including shoulder in and leg yield. Canter work is very nice and the transitions are coming. He jumped well today. He simply has a lovely attitude. He'd make a heckovan event horse, Frank; you may need to consider taking up a new summer hobby.

1/15/08 Quite cold, but not as cold as it is likely to be later this week, so in the tack and in the arena. After a walk, trot, shoulder-in, leg yield and canter warm up, moved on to jumping. I raised the angled fence up to about 2'6" and placed a pole after it to see if we could produce the rounder jump we have been getting lately on the smaller jumps. He is getting much more balanced, to the point that a 12m canter half circle turning to the jumps is easy for him. That is delightful. Walk canter transitions are coming along. Over the "higher" (2'6" is not high...) jump, he kept touching it with his front end. After 5 attempts with the same result, and checking that I was doing everything right as far as I knew, I concluded it might be the placing pole on the far side. I wanted him to still jump round, so I was interested to see what he would do when I took it away. Perfect round jump, no touching. 3 in a row, steady tempo, relaxed. Very nice. His strongid arrived. He has a bit of the other bucket left yet, but we are ready. I ordered it at the same time as some other stuff to share shipping cost.

1/14/07 Eighteen degrees, but it is supposed to be colder later in the week, so in the tack. It really wasn't bad in the indoor. After a warmup in walk, trot and canter, we did some jumping over some showjumps. I placed a placing pole 9' on the other side of the vertical to encourage him to land more quickly and round over his jump. The first time over he was really wondering how it was possible to land in only 9', but I assure him it was, and in the next runs through he got better and better and rounder and rounder. He is also getting much more balanced. It is not difficult for him to canter the 12m half circle to a jump on the centerline of the arena. This task was difficult a few weeks ago. Wonderful.

1/11/08 We have been working a lot in the ring lately, so went out and played whip horse out on a hack. Trotted and cantered about the 100 acre property. At one point came within 12' of about 8 deer staring at us, who then, of course, freaked and ran. Turner was lovely and just shied in place. I am sure he saw the one deer, but probably not the other 7, who made quite a ruckus when they went. I can say it surprised me a bit too. I probably shied in place too!

1/10/08 After a warmup, on to jumping. He is getting better about stepping under himself and powering over and also his transitions are improving. Good day.

1/7/08 Took a pasture hack to warm up. It was 45 degrees so it was delightful. Then came into the arena and put a barrel in the middle of the arena and jumped it on 20 m circles. This encourages horses to step underneath themselves and jump up rather than stretch out and sling across in an unbalanced manner. The barrel is starting to look wide to us now, so we are choosing which third of it to jump sometimes. His trot work is very nice. We are slightly increasing his grain (no additional cost) as he is just a little lighter than I would like. I checked his strongid and I will probably have to re-order within the month.

1/6/08 Brought him in, tacked up and went for a conditioning gallop in the back pasture since it had warmed up enough to make the layer of ice in the snow a non issue. He was excellent. He now does flying lead changes naturally and easily depending on what the terrain calls for. This is a great sign that he is getting strong on his weaker lead, as he does them equally well from right to left and left to right. This is a handy tool for a horse to have on a run. If they can switch leads at will, they don't tire as much.

1/3/08 Brought him in, tacked up and rode in the arena in the relative warmth of 29 degrees. After a warmup, set up the single barrel exercise, today with a focus on adjusting his canter stride coming up to it, so that he would have more tools in his toolbox than going for the "foxhunter fling" long stride. We cantered down to it several times on a moderate stride and then I asked him to do it adding one more stride in to the distance. He thought that was haaaaaard, but on the third try he figured it out. He is a long coupled horse, which makes it easy for him to stretch out over a jump, which can be a really great thing, but even better if they can both stretch out and compress when necessary. Very good day, much praise.

12/31/07 After tacking up, worked in the arena. After warmup in walk, trot and canter, did accuracy work over single barrels lying on the ground. It is a difficult exercise and he had trouble with it at first, with dropping his left shoulder. But, he got better and better, and eventually jumped two barrels in a 5 stride line several times well. Much praise and done. Blanket will stay on 24/7 the next 48 hours as it is expected to be quite cold.

12/29/07 Almost 30 degrees so he got to have his blanket off in the afternoon. We worked in the indoor on balance and strength in canter. We did spiral in and out from a 20 m circle to about a 12 m circle, which is pretty tough at a canter. It was fairly easy for him to the left. It was difficult to the right, but true to his usual good nature, he kept trying and by the end of the day he was doing much improved work to the left.

12/28/07 Four inches of new snow was falling in the morning, but he was pretty snug in his blanket, no wind. I brought him in, and he is just a delight to handle. Very attentive and light in the halter. Then I tacked up. He has a mild case of scratches on the white of his hind legs, but not a big deal. He is in nice weight. We worked in the indoor on balance in trot and transitions to and from canter. He is getting so much more balanced in canter and his right lead has come so far it is nearly miraculous, which is a testament to his willingness to learn and try. For horses to learn to use their weaker lead well is analogous to us learning to eat peas with our fork in our non-dominant hand. It is difficult and frustrating, especially when the other hand works just fine. Through this process, he has never so much as flicked an ear in annoyance. He's simply a delight, this horse.

12/21/07 The above picture seems like the colors might be off, but it is actually how it appeared from the back of Turner today. Major fog near sunset. Today was actually a study in conditions that a horse really dislikes. I took him out in snowy/icy footing to see how the new borium shoes were doing. Then, as we were going out in the thick fog, lots of deer flushed from the woods. Because of the high moisture content of the air, every sound carried forever, so every crackling branch sounded very close. So, now we have poor footing, poor visibility, loud sounds and to top it off, they started feeding while I was out riding. Yay. Because of all this, he was understandably a little distracted during the work out. However, we stuck with it and got some very nice trot work, and to his credit, he managed to listen to me despite all the factors, that alone, would have been little, but together create quite a challenge to horses.

Turner and Camie at the end of a Tipton hunt.

12/20/07 New borium shoes.

12/19/07 Thirty-four degrees today, so he got to enjoy a few blanket-free hours in the afternoon. We schooled in the indoor, working on canter transitions, which went very well. Did some trot lateral work (shoulder in, leg yield) and he is coming together very nicely. The bad news is the ice is precluding us from hunting, the good news is that he is getting a lot of dressage training, which can really be helpful to horses.

12/17/07 Holy cow, about 20 degrees. Heat wave. Brought him in and worked on the flat on flexibility and canter departs. He learns so fast, very willing and intelligent man. The farrier will be coming out on Wednesday to put new shoes with borium on.

12/14/07 Some days being a horse trainer is surprising. Today was one of them, because, as I was driving out to the barn I was thinking that I would just check all the horses, feed them cookies and give them the day off because the truck thermometer read 11 degrees at noon. But, as I went out to pet the first horse it wasn't that cold, so I tacked up and rode. And then the next and it just kept going like that until I looked up and realized that I was out of horses to ride. Huh. Turner was excellent today. Really lovely. We worked on neck reining, balance in canter and staying soft in his throatlatch. It went really well. I liked this horse from the start and the more I ride him the more I like him. He could probably be a pretty good horse trial horse as well as the foxhunter he is becoming.

12/13/07 Warmed up on the flat and then put him through a skinny gymnastic to help him with straightness and slowing down his action during jumping. Here is a picture of the gymnastic:

He had to jump straight and centered over the barrel, take one stride and then jump the vertical. He did it well the first time, which is pretty impressive. On successive attempts he got more quiet and confident, which was the point of the gymnastic. We did some flatwork to warm down. Very good day.

12/11/07 Anticipated ice storm not quite as bad as predicted. I went in to work in the afternoon and visited Turner and Sangha on the way home from work. They were in for the day, with nice clean stalls. I fed them treats and played with them a bit.

12/10/07 After a warm up, had a jump school We worked over two barrels on the ground, with no standards, which is more difficult than it sounds. It is a good test for straightness and keeping the horse on the aids to the jump. The first few times were a little woolly, but it got better and better, and he also was landing on the right lead, which is great. Then I took one of the barrels away, put guide rails on the side and jumped it, which went well, so on to jumping just the single barrel lying down with no guide rails. He did excellently. After practicing like this, coops start to look easy and wide. Ice storm coming tonight, so may not get out to see him tomorrow. Even on days I don't ride, I always stop in and check on him. But no worries, this barn is very well run. I've been impressed with their attention to detail where the horses are concerned.

12/8/07 Snow expected in the afternoon, so went to work him in the morning. Brought him in, tacked up, cookies and to the indoor. Did some flexibility work in walk and trot and then on to the main lesson in canter. I want to get him some more confidence on his right lead. The right lead is significantly harder for him, but he is getting it and he is always willing. The more even we can get him in using his body, the easier he will be on himself over time and the longer he will stay sound and happy.

12/6/07 Four inches of new snow was falling outside, and with the ice, that was two votes for working in the indoor. We did a lot of flexibility things and helping him leg go in his poll, especially to the right. He came right along. He is holding weight nicely. Saturday hunt cancelled due to ice and deer hunting. Wah.

12/4/07 Rode in the indoor and worked on canter departs and more work on flexibility. He is doing well. He likes his stall, I think, and has fit into the new (small, nice) herd well. He's in nice weight. Need to get borium on his feet. Will call the farrier.

12/2/07 Rode in the indoor, working on flexibility and giving him a chance to stretch his legs. They were kept in again today due to high winds and cold. Good decision on the barn manager's part.

12/1/07 Really glad we moved Turner yesterday. COLD rain turned to freezing rain, sleet and snow. He was snug inside.

11/30/07 Moved Turner to the new barn with no difficulty. Settled in well.

11/28-29/07 More barn details getting worked out. Would rather be riding...

11/26/07 Back from the holiday and spent the day looking at barns as KMJ is closing. I fed Turner some grain and made sure that his blanket is not chafing (it isn't) and turned him back out.

11/21/07 Cold rain and then snow. The new blanket is a hit, it shed the water like a newly waxed car and he was comfortable when I brought him in for feeding. He gets the holiday weekend off.

11/20/07 In for grain and then a light workout. With the wind and storm coming tonight and tomorrow, I didn't want him to be at all wet under his winter blanket when I turned him out. We did a lot of standing and relaxing work, interspersed with trot and canter work. After all, this is often what is required on hunts and hard for horses to understand that sometimes their job is to do nothing and relax. He did very well. I couldn't be more pleased with his blanket and its fit. It has a nice snuggle high neck and fits him like it was custom made. Even though it is a bit nasty out, he'll be fine.

11/9/07 In for grain, day off.

11/18/07 Second day of hunting at Tipton. Today he figured out how to canter in balance down a hill. It was wonderful. You could almost hear and audible click. His canter is becoming much more rateable and flexible. I carried a whip today to keep hounds out from under his feet which he appreciated. One still got in there, but he handled it well.

11/17/07 Hunted at Tipton. It was a three hour affair, with a fair amount of running about. He crossed creeks, jumped things and galloped well in first flight. He is a little fidgety early in the hunt when we have to check, but gets better, and is getting better about it in a larger sense too. There was a time when we were in an alleyway between two fences, like a fenced tractor lane, and the hounds kept coming out of the woods at him and he finally kicked at one. Barely caught it, and it was more of a brush away than kick. My experience indicates that as horses get more confident, the hound kicking becomes a non issue. The more he sees hounds out, the more comfortable he will become.

11/14/07 Got on and had him stand still for about 5 minutes. Just chill out and breathe, so that he realizes that he can relax under tack and will not always have to work. That went well, so on to some softening exercises and worked on collecting the canter, which is a bit of a challenge for a long-backed big-striding horse like him. As usual though, he gave it his best try and therefore had some success. Love his attitude.

11/13/07 Had a decompression hack around the property. Just took it easy. Then did some canter and trot work in the back field and jumped over the railroad tie jumps, which went perfectly the first time. Excellent.

11/11/07 Hunted at CVH. He did quite a lot better on this hunt. He had a few moments of jigging in excitement early, and overjumped 2 of the 5 jumps we took, but he was polite, interested in the hounds and mostly easy to ride. He was near some hounds in a tight space and didn't worry too much. Very good.

11/9/07 Schooled at Frank and Sana's. He did remarkably well.

11/8/07 Hauled down to CVH very well. The hunt was not the best experience for him. There was a fair amount of standing about, difficult for a newbie hunt horse, and also a lot of hounds popping out of the bushes on the trails in the dumps. He was finally unnerved enough about it to kick unlucky Republican in the head. I feared the worst, but the hound, after crying for a bit, got up and trotted off as if nothing happened. I felt terrible. We opted not to go through the next dump and went around with a friend. Jay's horse was a bit off, so we hacked home after about and hour and a half of hunting. He did jump a lot of new types of jumps and did well at it.

11/7/07 Second farrier wrenched his back, first farrier is out of town, third farrier showed up on time and got a new shoe on. After the shoeing, I took him out for a short hack and then schooled the railroad tie jumps. He had two stops at the larger one, but again, not a worry, just a technique/confidence thing. He stayed in for the night as we are leaving early in the morning.

11/6/07 Unintended day off for Turner as he sprung a right front shoe and I didn't want to injure the foot. It is actually on pretty well, but will come off with jumping or hunting. Farrier will be out tomorrow to fix it. Meanwhile, enjoy a picture of Turner at Sunday's hunt.

11/5/07 Day off for Turner. Brought him in to feed and put his blanket on. Cold and windy night tonight so a fully belly and a blanket are welcome.

11/4/07 Hunted the new Whitebreast country in Osceola. He was a bit would up for the first 10 minutes of hacking to the other side of the country, a little crooked, occasionally jiggy, but nothing really naughty. I think he was happy to go, and he did get better about it as we went. Jumped a ditch that a lot of other horses were not jumping, or were not jumping well. He did it with no problem. We jumped the more straightforward coops. The first and second ones went well, though he overjumped a lot at both of them. But very clean. At the third one, he had two refusals, but, again, they were of the "how?" variety, not belligerence. He jumped it on the third try, giving it plenty of room to spare and got a good pat and rub for it. I am not worried about the refusals at all. The coop was biggish and a lot of even the experienced horses, for whatever reason, were looking at it. When his jumping confidence comes up, he'll be a star. He galloped well, checked well and was rateable. Drank at the trailer, stood tied while we chatted after the hunt. Nice boy.

11/3/07 Did a very hilly hunter pace in Dexter. Jay rode Speck and we took the chestnut thoroughbred twins twice around the hilly 3 mile course (with a rest break between rounds). He jumped all sorts of wacky stuff, most of which was narrow so that the western riders could also use the path. He had some refusals, especially early, but they were of the "how do I do this?" variety, rather than the "I don't wanna" sort, and he always went when he figured it out. Crossed ditches, did big hills and he learned a lot and did very well.

11/2/07 Hack around the property and then jumped all three jumps perfectly the first time. Walked home on a slack rein. Nice.

11/1/07 Thanks to the fact that I feed him everytime I bring him in, he now comes to me when I call him. Handy trick in an 8 acre pasture. :-) Tacked up and went out for a hack. After a trot warmup, had a lovely canter around a 15 acre field. Perfect footing in the harvested soybeans. Then came back and schooled some railroad tie jumps. They are in graduated sizes, so we did the small one first. He overjumped that to an impressive degree--a greenie thing. We went over is several more times and he got quieter and more confident. By the end of the day we were jumping 3 in a row with 4 or 5 strides between them. Very good and he was very proud of himself.

10/31/07 Due to truck in shop, got out to the barn in the evening. It was already cooling off with the sun down, so I didn't want to get him sweaty before the cold night ahead. I fed him supper and fitted him with his new blanket, which fits perfectly. It is sort of puffy and so new that he looks a little like a very comfy, blue Sta-puf marshmallow horse.

10/29/07 Noticed he was missing a right front shoe when I tacked him up. Called the farrier who will be out at 8 tomorrow morning to replace it and check the other shoes as well. I rode with the balancing rein again, and it served its purpose well and only came into affect two or three times. Good. Had some nice, balanced work in walk, trot and canter. He is becoming stronger and more balanced. This will help in all phases of hunting and jumping. There is a hunter pace in Dexter on Saturday and a hunt on Sunday. If the weather is conducive, he will go to both, which I think will be a nice logical way to get him some jumping experience at first in a relatively controlled setting and then out on the hunt.

10/24/07 Brought him in and fed him. I put a balancing rein on him today (goes from girth at shoulder height, through bit, back to hands) just to help him stay soft in his neck in the few moments he chooses to go tight, as in transitions. He was very good with it and improved nicely. We did a lot of work on right lead and also transitions in general. Then we went out for a hack to go see some new things. The combines are out in full force in the adjacent fields and he was entirely unimpressed by them. Lovely! Lifestyle note, his blanket came today and I will try it on tomorrow. No need for it with the fine weather we are having, but there will come a time and it is nice to have it available.

10/22/07 Brought him in and fed him. He is maintaining weight for sure, and may even have gained some. Free choice hay is a good thing. Today we did flatwork and discussed staying relaxed in his neck while moving off the leg in leg yield and moving his rib cage to make it easier for him to take right lead, which is coming along. He's a smart boy. A little defensive in his neck posture at times, but it is coming along at a good rate.

10/19/07 Very wind today. The doors to the arena were creaking as they moved slightly due to the wind. He did not approve of this one bit. When I got off and secured the doors down, he got over it in a hurry. Had a jump school where he did very well.

10/18/07 Fed him a meal of grain and checked on him. It is his day off, but it was so rainy out, I wanted to make sure he was comfortable and had enough in his tummy. Doing fine.

10/17/07 Another jump school after a warmup. We had a discussion about standing still for mounting and came to an agreement that it is a good thing. He warmed up nicely, then we went on to trotting a vertical with a placing pole in front of it. He did very well, if a bit exuberantly, the first few times. Then he thought it would make sense to slide out right. I just brought him around again and re-presented and he slid out left. (Aside: most horses, if they are successful running out in one direction, will always try the same direction again. Only the really talented ones go either direction easily.) Anyway, not to worry, as this is a not unusual part of the learning curve. My friend who was watching dropped it down to a pole on the ground and we trotted that twice. Then put it back up and he jumped fine. Just a blip on the radar screen. By the end he was cantering it well and landing on the right lead, which was a nice surprise. Good day. Lifestyle note: it is a miserable rainy night up here. He got a good bellyful of hay by himself in a stall before he went back out, where there is also hay for him to munch. He has my New Zealand rug on, which is pretty waterproof. He'll be fine.

10/16/07 Rode him in the morning. After a warmup, I set up two standards with a pole on the ground between them and then a placing pole 9' in front of that on the ground. I trotted him through there, which he was thinking was odd the first time, but he went through. The second and third times he just went through calmly in pretty good rhythm. Then I cantered him through, which went fine. Then I raised the jump part of it up to about 2' and trotted him through. He was pretty sure his job was to get to the other side, and made a brave and gangly jump over it and knocked it down. That is about par for the course and he got much praise for the effort. Knocked it down the second time too, which was fine because he got standing still practice when I had to get off and fix it and remount. The third time he went over without touching it, and on subsequent times, he did the same. Much praise. He got more confident all the time and by the end he was cantering it with ears up and in stride. Wonderful start.

10/14/07 Hauled over to Tipton and hunted. He was a little dubious about being the first horse on the trailer, but stepped on with some reassurance. We got to our friend's house, dropped off the other horses on the trailer (who weren't hunting), tacked up and hacked to the meet, about a half mile away. He was exemplary for all of it. When we got to the meet, he stood fairly quietly. Here is a picture from his back during announcements. Note the clarity of the picture that indicates how quietly he is standing, and also note that Monte is (still) talking...

We started out as the walk/trot fieldmaster, as I wanted him to have a quiet start. The gate group leader and I eventually switched when it became apparent that his way of going was more walk/trot than mine was. Turner and I took over the gate group and had a lovely time of it. Walking, trotting, cantering, galloping, one flat out gallop, and much learning about crossing ditches and stream etc. He looked at a few things (round bales, farm equipment, cows), but he did so in a reasonable way, just being surprised by them and then checking them out. At the end, he had a little trouble with the concept of flat-footed walking home, but we had just been on a big run, so it was understandable that he would still be up. A professional photographer was there and I expect her pictures will be lovely and available soon. I will let you know. He threw a shoe when he overstepped while slinging along in a fabulous trot. It was replaced by Ken that afternoon. Lifestyle note: if he is going to stay on outdoor board this fall season, we should have a blanket for him, so that he will put on or at least maintain weight. For now I have my NZ rug on him. Let me know if you want me to buy him one or if you have something suitable to send. And just for fun, here is a picture of Field Day graduate Tina and Frank (and Sana and Dior) at the Burwell parade.

10/11/07 Big gap here due to travel and a lovely bout of the 'flu. Brought him in and groomed and tacked up. He is getting better about picking up his feet. He is not particularly interested in standing quietly for mounting, but the day after having 7 days off is not usually the time to work on it. After I got on, we walked off and he suggested that he could get a little light in the front, drop over his right shoulder and go out the door to the pasture. This was all at a walk, so not a scary thing, but I addressed it because if he did it in trot or canter it would be a big deal. He is getting better about leg aids and I also have been playing around with neck reining, which is coming along. His trot work is getting better as he is stretching forward in his neck nicely and relaxing in his poll. Right lead canter is still hard for him, but it is improving as he gets better balance. Good day.

10/3/07 Worked in the arena with another horse. He was relatively unfazed when the horse went by at close range and when going with the horse at the same rate. This is a very good sign. Had some good work in right lead canter too. Very good.

10/1/07 Warmed up in the arena with walk, trot, canter, and leg yield work which went pretty well, but more work remains for right lead canter and leg yield and getting his walk through. That sounds like a lot of things, but it is just par for the course and his trot is lovely. After that we took a walking and trotting tour of the property, a mile around the place. He looked at things and at one point suggested we go home (scary item along the path that frightens a lot of horses) by just quietly turning around. No hysterics, just, "no thank you." I turned him back around and suggested he needed to go past it and he did. He noticed every little thing along the path (bag stuck on a wire fence) but over reacted to nothing. I like this horse's mind.

9/28/07 Rode in the indoor working on leg aids and flexibility, which are coming along very well. He is bright and cooperative. Canter work coming along too, with some good right lead canter. He needs strengthening and balance, but I don't see any major problems with him. He's a nice prospect.

9/26/07 Worked in the arena on leg aids and flexibility. He doesn't know a thing about it, but is willing to learn. He does have a few opinions about where to go and not go and will pop a shoulder to get his points across. This is a very good reason to get the leg aids point across. He did very well and made good progress. Lots of work on canter, which is not terribly naturally balanced. I got right lead twice and only did one circle of it each time so that he wouldn't tire (doing the weaker lead for horses is akin to eating peas with your non-dominant hand--difficult and frustrating! Short bursts are best at first.) After he was done, a rinse and turned him out and he went galloping away, on his right lead. Who says horses don't have senses of humour!

9/24/07 Brought him in and fed him. Rode him in the arena and introduced giving in his throatlatch which he figured out pretty quickly. Had some nice trot work where he let go in his neck. Canter work was a bit sketchy, got the right lead canter once. Did a bunch of flexibility work rather than push him into it. It will come or we will find that he needs a chiropractic adjustment if he doesn't come easily "unstuck". No worries and I really think he is a good boy.

9/22/07 Caught him easily in the pasture and brought him in and tacked up. No new scratches from being in the herd, which is pretty amazing. I rode him. He stood very nicely for mounting and I had him continue to stand there and just relax, which he did. We did some flexibility stuff as he is quite stuck in his neck. He got a little annoyed with me once and registered his complaint by leaning through his outside shoulder, a small offense. He has a nice trot, though he is tight in his neck during it. In canter he is quite unbalanced to the left, and much prefers not to take his right lead, though he will. These things are not difficult to address.

9/21/07 Groomed him, shortened his mane and got to know him a bit. He is a little heavy about picking up his feet, but we'll work on that. Went out and did some ground work. He started out stiff, but picked up what I was trying to get him to do very quickly. Seems like a nice horse.

9/19/07 Turner arrived. A little up when he got here, but settled in nicely and was very reasonable about being introduced to the herd.

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