Corey and I have not yet run out of ‘firsts’.  Today we did our first trail ride! But that was at the end of the session, so I will start at the beginning.  I had lessons to teach and knew it was going to get Very Hot today.  So, I opted to use Corey as a ‘teaching chair’.  This would give him more riding time with very little pressure.  He was a little difficult a couple times, trying to play chicken with sweet Gunny the lesson horse.   But as long as I remember to keep a true opening rein and really step into the stirrup, I can get Corey to turn as needed.  When my student would stop for a drink of water, I would work Corey on trotting and doing large circles, but mostly we walked and I yelled instructions.  

At the end of the arena part of the lesson, I asked Corey to canter on the left lead again.  He answered fairly easily and did about 6 nice strides, which I rewarded him for.  Then I asked again, and he actually gave me a nice organized canter for about ¼ of the ring.  That is Huge progress!  Then we went out for a simple trail ride. 

Now, again, I am cutting corners and leaving holes.  I have never ponied Corey out and I have not even Hand walked him off the property.  But I honestly felt that we could just ‘go for it’.  Initially, he was worried about going out the gate – there was a shadow across the opening, And we had a stranger (to him) standing at the gate.  He is still a little concerned about people being behind him.  But as soon as I asked the Mom to step back a little, Corey was willing to go through the gate.  I had been prepared to dismount and lead him on his trail ride if his worry had persisted.  

He walked willingly, following Gunny along the trail.  Then we took the lead and he had no problem walking in front.  He marched calmly back in through the gate, the shadow no longer a concern.  I could Not have been prouder of him. 

After unsaddling, I decided to try washing him again.  He was a little resistant, but then stood calmly while I washed off all the sweat.  There is not much more I could ask of him after just 40 days in captivity.  

This is the easiest Blog ever!  I narrated my ride on Corey yesterday while Jack took video.  We are still working on the wind noise situation - but you should be able to hear me.  I talk about working with young horses and how I motivate them.  

Corey and I also canter for the first time - it is worth the watch to see how that goes!  

After the ride, I tried to get a photo of Corey in his nice tack.  He kept following me, so the images turned out more like Selfies.  But it is hard to complain about a horse who just wants to follow his mommy!  

It has been a sort of slow week for Corey.  He has been really sore post surgery.  I was supposed to make him exercise "hard" for 30 minutes twice a day.  I tried.  Really I did.  but it made NO sense to him, and I could Not explain it to him.  For the first time EVER, he tried to leave the round pen.  Not violently, but he looked over the rails away from me and hit the fence just a little.  It was clear what his thoughts were.  

I have worked so hard to create a relationship of trust and respect and even if it was 'good for him', he did Not know it.  I also have to admit, I did not see a significant difference in his level of swelling vs that of Kona's.  So after a couple days of round penning him, with my heart in my throat, I just eased off.  I made sure he got out,  I made sure he moved for at least 10 minutes, and on Friday, I decided to at least have the work make a little sense - rather than just chasing him round and round in circles.  I put a Western saddle on him.  

Since the Vaquero Challenge is going to include some form of a reining pattern, I will probably have to ride Western.  I am still a little unsure of the rules.  But even if I can compete all english, Corey is going to need to be a multi discipline horse to be a good lesson pony.  So he might as well get used to the western saddle.  He accepted it with very little fuss, and only humped his back slightly when he first trotted off with it.  Then it was business as usual for a 10 minute lunging session.  

Saturday he just got turned out as I was very busy teaching.  

Today, we went to a horse show.  We didn't compete of course, but it was just a way to see how he would handle being hauled someplace new and all the sights and sounds of a show.  But first, he had to load into my 2 horse trailer.  This meant going up a ramp.  Would you be surprised if I told you it took 2 minutes to get him in?  And he stood calmly while I went around back and closed everything up.  I didn't have Anyone helping at all!  He really IS that easy!  

When we got to the show, I again played it safe at first and used the lunge line to lead him around.  It was not at All necessary.  He walked with me, met people, saw the water truck, and even walked the trail course!  He gave a funny look at the water truck, and was initially unsure about the umbrellas over the hot dog vendor's stand - but not a moment of serious resistance.  I even felt secure enough to tie him to the trailer and leave him while I helped set the jump courses.  I did use a bungee tie and put food in front of him, but he just stood and ate and didn't fuss even a little.  

After setting the jump course, I asked permission to walk Corey around the ring and over the jumps.  Now I had envisioned us trotting over the jumps. Corey Walked.  And Carefully stepped over each jump.  But he was calm and he did not refuse.  So, it was a good start!  

Since he was being SO calm, I decided I would try riding around the warm up ring a little.  Tacking up was easy, and he stood still as I mounted.  Then he walked through the parking lot and into the ring.  He was unsure about the PA and tried to turn around, but not violently, just still 'steering challenged.  

When we finally walked a full circuit of the ring, I called us winners and let it be the end of the day!  This was the 10th time I had ever sat upon his back.  Lots of people were impressed by him, and we did a Lot to promote the Tehachapi Mountain horse.  I hope more people adopt them because we are showing people just how wonderful they are!

He loaded nicely - I still just bribe him in - and he rode in the trailer perfectly.  I am sure he was relieved that was all this trip in the box meant!  You just go someplace, eat some hay, walk around, and get to come home!  I am sure his future will involve many more trailer trips and horse shows.  I want him to enjoy it!  Corey says as long as there is Hay involved, he is Willing to try it!  

Sunday Morning – July 13 – this had been marked on the calendar for the past 4 weeks.  Diane and Steve Palmer were sponsoring a gelding day for the Tehachapi Mountain stallions that had been caught.  A couple others besides Cory had been adopted and we hauled in on Sunday.  Dr. Eric Davis, the R-Vets.org veterinarian had brought a team of Vet students and technicians who specialize in providing vet care for “underserved populations”.  As such, they do a lot of work with Indian tribes, working with their wild horse herds.  They have a well designed portable vet stock for handling the true wild horses – so they were able to geld quite a few of the bachelor stallions from the Oak Creek herd.  This will reduce a Lot of the fighting that goes on.  In a true wild situation, the stallions would be able to spread out more and there would not be so much pressure and therefore they would not be hurting each other.  But the water and grass is so limited, the Tehachapi Mountain horses can’t really get away, so the stallions are constantly sparing.  This can lead to permanent injuries that make them useless as riding horses and also cause them to suffer.  By gelding a number of the colts, this pressure can be eased.  It also makes the male horses more adoptable.  In fact, when I was heading up to select my Challenge horse I swore I was ONLY going to look at the geldings.  But Corey and his friend stole my heart with their curiosity and open spirits.  So,  I took home a stallion and have not regretted it in the least.  

   It appears that many people Only want to adopt mares or youngsters – either foals or yearlings.  I think they feel that life on the range as a stallion will create a hardened personality.  I have to say, Corey has convinced me otherwise.  I believe that if you can get a colt before he has become a herd stallion, he has not yet learned to fight.   Except for kicking Spritz when I tried to pony him, Corey has shown NO aggression and is really not very resistant.  To me, the advantages of getting a wild horse who has spent 2-3 years actually living in the wild are many:  The horse has learned to move in terrain and has muscles and balance that can Not be created in a paddock baby; The horse has learned to conserve energy – they think before they react; the horse has herd manners – they have learned to respect their leaders; you don’t have to feed the horse for 2 years before you can put them under saddle – as Corey has shown, you can be under saddle in 30 days – saving about $2000 in feed costs; and you can see how they look as a nearly mature horse – rather than having to guess at their conformation.  

Anyway, today was gelding day for Corey.  He loaded up beautifully.  We opted to just turn him loose in the 3 horse slant load that I borrowed.  I will have to work on teaching him to ride in a 2 horse and to have his head tied – but today, that just wasn’t necessary.  We made the drive up to the entrance, arriving only 10 minutes late.  That was my fault, I had a very slow starting morning.  Luckily, as we eased our way along the winding Oak Creek Road, I was able to catch up with the other 2 trailers, so we all arrived at the catch pens at the same time.  They had already gelded two other horses by the time we got parked.  One was standing in a corral and another was laying on the ground.  The vets went to work on a 9 month old colt that had been adopted in April.  We left Corey to wait in the trailer.  He was calm and happily eating hay. 

Jack and I just had time to tour around the corrals.  “Brownie” was standing by himself in a pen – he had been gelded the day before.  Diana told me that the vets had closely inspected his knee and there was No Problem with it.  I could see there was no longer any swelling, so whatever had happened was fully resolved.  The vets also estimated the brown colt’s age at 2 ½ yrs.  I was SO relieved that I had Not taken him home last month.  I would have HATED putting this level of pressure on a 2 yr old.  I am barely happy asking Corey to do as much as he is at a 3 yr old.  I think angels were whispering in my ear the day I chose Corey over the brown one.   But I kept thinking about this cute colt and had even come up with a name for him – Kona – because he is like Dark Brown Coffee. 

Jack and I had Many discussions about Kona.  Jack was concerned that if I brought Kona home, it might distract Corey, or he might not stay as bonded to us as he had been the past 4 weeks.  I had concerns about how to transport the two of them home safely.  The LAST thing I wanted was for Corey to get beat up in the trailer and lose a week or two of training time.  But I also really felt that I could Help Kona and the herd by taking him Off the land and into training.   We continued to discuss it and finally Jack agreed to let me bring both boys home.  

Now it was Corey’s turn to see the vet.  I was so pleased to be able to say Yes, I had given him a tetnus shot 2 weeks prior AND he had been dewormed.  I then put the lunge line on and led him out.  He walked calmly over and stood very nicely.  He crowded me one time when some kids were playing around, but he steadied right away and did not seem worried about all the people all around.  He accepted the vet’s shots without any fuss and laid down without a problem.  Then I stepped back and let the experts do their work.  They were quick and efficient.  I didn’t even see Corey twitch.  In fact, the Only problem we had was that he was TOO relaxed.  He didn’t want to wake up.  Cindy Davis was watching over him, and was checking his eyes.  “I see you in there – you are awake, you just don’t want to get up” she told him.  She finally had to bug at him to at least get him sternal – this takes the pressure off the lungs and keeps the underside leg from falling asleep, so the horse  can’t get up easily.   After a few more minutes he was up on his feet, tongue hanging out a little but stable.  

We had lots of discussions about how best to transport Corey with Kona.  While they had been pasture mates before, it had also been a month.  Kona had been gelded the day prior, so he was fully alert, while Corey was still dopey.  We decided to let them visit in a corral before trying to load them in the rig.  It is good that we did this.  Initially, they were posturing and there was a chance of kicking, so we moved Kona into an adjacent pen and let them meet through the fence first.  

Eventually it was clear they remembered each other, and so we put them back together, and much mutual grooming took place.  While they were getting reacquainted, Jack and I got to walk out into the meadow to see the herd.  But a little while later, as we ate lunch, 4 members of the herd came to check Us out!  It is really an incredible experience to see wild horses who are so unafraid of humans.  I think the Chincoteague ponies are supposed to be about the same.  It seems it is only when you chase horses with ATV’s and heliocopters that mustangs get flighty.    In fact, on one walk out there with Joe, Jack encountered a horse who did NOT like Joe – I guess the instinct to fight off coyotes is strong – and when Jack didn’t take Joe away soon enough, he got reinforcement – and the two horses STARED at them until Jack left!  

After Corey was fully recovered, we faced the challenge of loading both horses.  We opted to have me lead Corey in first and then we would send Kona in after him.  Corey was easy to catch and led nicely right up to the entrance to the chute.  THEN he had flashbacks and decided maybe he didn’t want to walk down that narrow space.  He even made some pawing protests.   AS chance would have it the R-vets team chose that moment to move their rig, and that made a HUGE clatter, and Corey lived up to his Wrong Way name and backed away.  But with a little pressure from Steve, Corey remembered his loading training and stepped into the trailer.   To keep him from coming back out, I tied him in the back, with the plan to release him as soon as the back door was closed.  Kona was fairly easy to push down the chute and into the trailer – his brother was already in there, so it didn’t seem so scary. 

The long slow haul back down Oak Creek’s winding dirt road was uneventful.  Except for a meeting on the road.  As we turned a corner, there was a wild horse IN the road in front of us.  And then we saw 3 more on the shoulder. It made me think of the Budweiser super bowl commercial where the group of Clydesdales stop the truck and makes the driver give back the puppy!  But this posse finally let us pass.   We were even able to stop briefly at Hi Desert Cellars to visit our friend Effran and show him our two Wild Horses.  He was impressed – he had expected thin shaggy animals and instead we had a pair of nearly matched colts with shiney coats and full bellies.  Once we got home, we made the decision to let the boys off load into the same pen, and it went smoothly.  About 2 hrs later, I moved Corey back into his stall next to Kona.  So, I drove up to Tehachapi with one stallion and came home with two geldings.  Sounds like a good trade to me. 

Enjoy this video that Jack made that shows just a little of what went on - I am very pleased with how the day went.  

Day 28 – July 12  - Group ride

Friday we didn’t do much just a little walk around and some hand grazing.  He is still concerned about the sound of the rainbird – but he now stops and listens to me.  So, it wasn’t much, but at least he got out.   I vowed that Corey would be #1 priority on Saturday.  My goal was to ride him while I taught my morning group lesson.  This would test how Corey handled  other horses working around him.  Again, Jack videotaped it and it shows how well Corey did.  One of my lesson horses was actually coming into season, and while Corey  was aware of her, he did not lose him mind.  He has been a very good minded stallion, which means he will make an Incredible gelding!  He had tiny moments of concern with horses trotting up behind him, but it was all very slight.  He also had one tiny spook, and yet he recovered quickly and carried No tension.  We trotted several times, and he thought about cantering in a couple of places.  But since we were sharing the arena with students, I didn’t want to take the risk.  There is always the chance that the first canter turns into bucking and if I got dumped, I didn’t want 3 riders on horses with a young stallion running loose.  But I really liked that he felt strong enough to consider it. 

Of note was the fact that I had forgotten to pick up a crop, but Corey moved forward off my leg aids!  A couple times, he resisted and tried to turn back to the gate, but I was able to send him nicely forward.  He stood calmly in the middle while the other horses cantered.  Sometimes young horses are spooked by the other horses going fast.  Corey was fine.  I wound up riding him for almost an hour.  That is the longest he has ever had to carry me.  I know that tomorrow he will get a day off; if being gelded can be considered a day off!  We will have to go a little easy for a couple days, but work will continue even after the gelding. 

Here is the video - thank you Jack Whitmer!  It is an interesting study - both in Corey And in how I teach part of my group lesson.  Know that I Lead Corey around the ring for the start of the lesson, until I was sure he would not 'wig out' at the other horses in the ring.  

I was very pleased that he has figured out forward - even if he gave me a little More than I wanted at times.  Under normal circumstances, I might have let him canter on when he offered - but since there is a 50/50 chance that a young horse will buck in their first canter, and that means I Might have gotten dumped, I felt it was not a good risk.  Having a young Stallion Loose in the ring, while kids are riding, One one a mare just coming into season, is NOT a safe situation!  So canter will wait for another week - but the rest of the work shows decent progress.  But I think I cluck too much!  

Day 26 - July 10th – a ride in the big ring

We had an easy day on Wednesday.   I alternate hard work days of riding with lighter days.  His muscles are Not up to carrying my weight and I don’t want him sore, or he will learn how to resist.  So after riding our first trots on Tuesday, my focus was on getting him comfortable walking all around the ranch, and going in the large arena.  He also always gets turned out in the round pen for some independent time – so he can roll or move around.  Most horses will run and buck when turned out, Corey never seems to want to waste the energy. I think that is one of the best things about a wild raised horse, they learn to think and not be so reactive.  

Thursday, we ventured out to ride in the main ring, even though it was very windy.  First I worked him in the round pen, setting up the jump and working him over it.  His coordination is so much more improved, he is starting to have decent form over the jump.  I set it up to 2 feet and he went calmly over.  

Then I tacked him up in the barn aisle.  We even moved up to a real bridle.  He looks very handsome in a nice dressage type headstall.  There is a good video of our work, and I was very proud of him.  He was calm and even understood the ‘go forward’ cue much better. I am still using the whip to reinforce my legs – but he goes on much better, and considering that he has still only been ridden a few times, I am very pleased with him.  

The video shows he is a long way from trained - but he might qualify as Green Broke.  He walks and trots and sort of steers and stops, and this is less than 4 weeks from wild.  Most of all, I love his attitude.  

Day 24 - July 8

Corey has fans!  Today, Sandi Shultis came by to meet him.  She is a friend of one of the other challenge trainers, Amber, and she had seen my posts and been following our blog. Then she remembered that Sweetwater Ranch was where her horse moved when she sold him in 1992.  She wondered if I remembered him – his name was HOTS.  Well, OMG – did I remember Hots?  He was my primary lesson horse until 5 years ago. Sadly, I had to tell Sandi that Hots died in 2009.  But I was also able to reassure her that he lived to age 31 and he was well cared for and well loved all the time he was at Sweetwater. 

Anyway, Sandi came to meet Corey.  I had my usual busy morning and was running a little late (actually she told me she would get here between 11 – 11:30 and I was done with my last lesson Right at 11:30 – which is miraculously on time for me!)  So Sandi had time to meet Corey and watch Bri work with a green broke paint mare.  Then I brought Corey out for another series of firsts!  It seems almost every training session has some sort of first.  I worry that I am rushing him, but he is staying calm and willing and we DO have to get a LOT done in 4 months.  So today’s firsts were:  1st time tied in the barn aisle and getting tacked up.  1st time riding and steering just on the bit. 1st time trotting with a rider on.  

Grooming and tacking up was easy – he flinched just a little as I tossed the saddle pad on his back, but really just a flinch.  I just didn’t give him time to see it coming, I guess, and we were in a new location.  We went to the round pen and I lunged him just a little.  It was already over 100 degrees and I was tired and I didn’t want to die!  Then I got on.  He walked off readily and had some degree of steering.  I think I want to try a full cheek snaffle to keep the bit from sliding through his mouth.  Whoa is still a process at times, but he is improving.  The ground driving has helped a lot.  

So, since it was all going well, I asked him to trot.  I was braced for some form of resistance – but really it was not a problem.  We started with just a few steps, but in the end he did a full lap around the round pen.  The walk is still a bit ‘drunk’ – but the trot is actually pretty stable.   

After we were done, I brought the hose into the round pen, just in case Corey really tried to break away.  We had a few moments where he didn’t want the water to touch him, but then he let me really wash him off, I even got to scrub his back.  He kicked at the water on his back legs a couple times, but the fear eased.  He now knows he won’t Melt! 

So, it was another good day of training.  I am really starting to plan on taking him off the ranch to experience life in new places.  Towards that end, I have been taking him for walks around the ranch.  He is still nervous about Rain Birds – the sound of the sprinkler is one of the few things that makes him worry.  But he stepped over jumps and crossed a ditch without a problem. So, I think we will be OK going out and about.  But first we have to get through Sunday July 13th.  Poor boy.  

I didn’t blog on Sunday or Monday – but I did post on Facebook – so just so there are no gaps in the progress, here is what I wrote. 

Sunday – July 6 – Walking Corey around the Big Ring- we walked all around both ways, then lunged, and then we walked over some obstacles. But first he asked to roll in the sand! 

He was so willing and brave about stepping over new obstacles - I am thinking of entering him in the In Hand trail class at HiDHA in July!  Just for fun and the experience.  

Monday July 7 - I tried to be brave and tough. I taught lessons starting at 8 am - right through to 11:30. Cooled down for an hour - went back out - thinking I was going to ride Louie. UMMM - it feels like a convection oven turned on High out there! So I decided to fill everyone's water barrels so they have cooler water to drink, and while I was doing that, I played a little with Corey. I led him around while I moved the hose for a while - to desensitize him to the hose and the water coming out of it. Then I decided to try a real tying session. I used one of the Leader ties - but one that had the elastic aspect broken. I wanted the emergency release of the quick snap that they have. So, he stood tied while I groomed him, picked his hooves. whenever a barrel was full, I would walk away, move the hose and come back and give him a carrot. In the end he stood calmly tied for 30 minutes. 
He also got a bridle bath and his feathers scissored off.

So, I made the best possible use of my time - but OMG - My feet are burning - I am calling a truce and pulling off boots and maybe even breeches and just hang out in shorts for a couple hours. I have lessons starting at 4 pm - I can ride Louie then!

Days 18 – 21 – Independence weekend

Thursday – July 3 – we added ground driving.  This is a twofold project.  It will work to help him understanding the reins and turning and stopping – AND it is a beginning towards driving him with a cart.  Jack took video – but his computer is locked up, and I am not sure when we will have that footage.  But let me tell you, you won’t believe it anyway.  This colt, who is a 3 yr old Stallion, accepted the whole process without a fuss.  I added a surcingle – with side reins hanging part way down – No Problem.  I started by lunging him.  Then I put the ground driving lines through the rings and attached them to the bit.  And I started double lunging him – and basically ground drove him.  It was NOT a problem.  He turned.  He stopped.  He walked on. 

My Other  goal was to help him learn to walk from MY aids, not just following Jack.   So, I worked from the ground a little, making sure that the use of my dressage whip didn’t set him off.  We worked in hand until I was sure the whip would not upset him, but that he understood the command ‘Walk on”.    Then I mounted up.  It wasn’t perfect.  He stood a Lot.  But I kept tapping him and gradually he started walking.  He looked and felt Lost at Sea!  But we wove left and right and finally we managed a lap around the round pen.  He is better going right than left.  He also proves that he is a smart horse.  He wanted to just stand in the shade on the west side of the pen!  But it was all calm.  He tensed up one tiny moment when I was tapping him with the whip.  But No bucking.  No running.  Not even much head tossing.  I consider it ALL GOOD. 

We had a lot of stops and a lot of turning around – but it was all very calm. He just doesn’t ‘get it’ yet.  But he isn’t fighting with me and he is as calm as can be!  

Later, the kids from the Boys and Girls Club of the Antelope Valley came for their horse club session.  They were all eager to meet Corey.  He was more than willing to greet all of them.  I Love that he likes people. All people.  It should help him in the future when he goes to shows.  And it will serve him well as he meets people any place.  Mostly it just means he is super cool

Friday July 4th.  

Our original plans has been to go away for a couple days. But Jack fell from the ladder while putting up the American Flag.  So, we stayed home.  But I got caught up in cleaning my office and I just turned Corey out in the round pen, with No work.  No other horses got worked either.  It really was a holiday.  If you can consider spending 8+ hrs cleaning my office a holiday.  But It needed doing.  I found the paperwork I had been looking for, and in the evening we grilled brats and had home made potato salad. Good enough.  

Saturday July 5th

I asked Jack to take just still photos of our training session, since he is having major computer battles when he tries to upload the videos.  But I don’t have even these right now.  But I have to say, Corey continues to impress me.  And I didn’t think I could get More impressed with him. This marks exactly 3 weeks since he and his brown friend ‘volunteered’ to come into the catch pen.  In just 20 days, he has learned to be easily caught and haltered.  He picks up all 4 hooves.  He accepts grooming and fly spray.  He LIKES me and nickers to me! He accepts a saddle, bit and even ground drives.  I can ride him, with NO bucks or resistance.  He is friendly to strangers and greets almost everyone as a new friend.  He jumps low cross rails when lunging and is not afraid of the cart.  

Today, I reinforced the ground driving, and really worked on WHOA.  Sometimes when I apply pressure on the bit, his nose comes to his chest, but he keeps on walking.  From the ground, I can at least drag him to a stop.  He needs to learn that Whoa and a rein pull mean Stop Moving.  He also needs to steer more consistently.  But at least he is calm and willing.  

During grooming, when I asked for the left hind leg, he didn’t want to give it.  He gave a slight kick towards me.  I corrected him with a loud “AUGHTTT”  and he walked away.  He was Not hard tied, just the rope wrapped 4 times around the top rail.  So, he just left.  And when I went to catch him, he actually trotted away.  This is a FIRST.  Up until now, he has always Wanted to be WITH me.  Today, ummm – “not so much”.  I am not sure if this is because the work is getting harder, or just because he had yesterday off.  But I kept the pressure on him and made him trot around until he said “this is dumb” and he stood and faced me.  And I caught him, and we moved on.  

When I put on the saddle and the ground driving equipment on top of that, it was  No problem (as always – but it still amazes me!)  We drove around the pen,  and changed directions a lot.  Finally, I got on him.  Just 2 days ago, he could barely walk 5 steps.  Today, he stepped right off on command and did a full lap around the pen. Corey continues to amaze me with his ability to Learn!  What I teach him one day, is fully understood the next day!  

I  didn’t want to be greedy, but I also need him to build strength, so we walked around for at least 10 minutes.  He was good and calm and happy the whole time.  Hard to complain about that!  

Then I asked him to load into the trailer, and he clomped right in.  I added the complexity of Backing Out and while that first step backwards off the trailer was confusing and a little scary, he did it and stayed calm.   I really REALLY love the mind this horse has!  

Goals for next week – walk around the ranch more – add trot while riding – pony on trail (or hand walk) – start dragging something  in preparation for carriage driving … and on July 13th, he gets gelded!  

Sunday – June 29 The day began with the realization that our well had quit working.  With 28 horses, we Have to have water, so much of the day was spent hauling water in.  But besides coping with no well, and teaching some lessons and checking out a horse for sale, I Still found time for Corey. I saddled him and Jack led him while I sat in the saddle. We actually managed to walk all the way around the round pen in each direction. I dismounted a couple times to reward him and give him a chance to rebalance, but he was calm and willing and mostly just playing with Jack! Later, I took a couple minutes to see how he would feel about loading in the trailer. I walked him up to it with a bucket of carrots. He stood right at the entrance trying to figure out how to get his front feet up the step up. This is the 3 horse slant load that I borrowed to pick him up in, and what I will probably haul him back up for gelding in. 

So, he was standing at the step up, stuck. I backed him up a couple times and asked him forward again. He WANTED to come in, so I saw No need to apply any additional pressure. Instead, I put a carrot on the floor JUST out of reach. He stretched and stretched his neck. He moved his hind feet forward until they almost touched his front ones. And then the light bulb came on, and he lifted one front leg WAY up and put it in the trailer. I fed him a carrot and plop, the other front leg was up and in. I praised and stepped back a little and offered another carrot. CLOMP CLOMP the back feet were in. Loading as simple as it gets. 

I know many people are opposed to treats and bribing a horse to load. But Positive reinforcement is the BEST way to create a New behavior. He is not getting grabby for treats, and he does not demand them, but they sure make him try new stuff. So what the heck! 

We turned around and stepped back out (yes, we will have to master backing out eventually - but not today!) and he reloaded as easy as can be two more times! 

Then I dewormed him. I can't say he liked it, but he didn't resist - even when I decided to give him a little more since he managed to spit quite a bit of the first dose out. 

It is amazing that it was just 2 weeks ago that I brought him home. I am NOT rushing - and his calm demeanor is proof of that. I do have hopes of starting to take him out away from home. He is leading safely all around the ranch now, and he has not made any serious attempt to split from me. When he does spook a bit, I can just tug on the halter and he stops. I am going to try ponying again soon, and also start taking him for walks off the property. Should be fun!

Day 16 –Monday June 30 – The well repair guys came at 7 am – but it took until 3 pm to have the water running again.  This meant more carrying buckets to distribute water, and Jack made trips to fill up three 55 gallon barrels.  He devised a great system using a sump pump to get the water back out of the barrels and into the horse’s buckets.  But it was still a complex morning.  In the afternoon, I had my 4H group over.  After lecture, everyone wanted to meet Corey, so we went out.  I wasn’t sure how he would handle a crowd of 15 people, so we started in his corral.  But he was so calm and eager to meet everyone, I decided to do a training session and let the kids watch.  I did a quick grooming, showed everyone the soles of his hind feet, which are worn completely smooth.  Then I made him round pen a little – which is an activity that makes NO sense to him!  We ended with playing with a small German flag – to see if it would spook him.  His first reaction was irriation, and he walked away to the middle of the round pen.  He pooped on his pile as if to assert his stallion position, then he came back over and let me twirl the flag around his face.  

Day 17 – Tuesday July 1 – It is still HOT.  103 degrees.  But I really still have to keep working.  Again, I had a morning full of lessons to teach.  I am so lucky that Corey is not a Hard wild horse – I know some of the Mustang Makeover trainers devote 4-5 sessions a day to make enough progress in 100 days. There is no way I can do that.  So we have to make our sessions count – without pushing or forcing.  I had turned Corey out in the round pen just to have some free time.  It tickled me to no end when I walked out and he nickered to me!  Then he walked to the gate and Met me carrying the saddle.  That is High praise from a horse indeed!  My goal was to ride him without a leader today.  Saddling was no big deal, and I put the bit on him without problem.  I didn’t want to attch reins there, and tried going through the rings to the halter, but that wound up being awkward.  So, I lunged him with the bit on, and then took it off for riding.  I got on.  No problem.  I asked him to walk on for step up.  He had no clue.  I turned his head until he took a step – gave him Lots of praise,  turned him the other way, got another step.  So he was following the pressure – but he still could not figure out how to walk.  So, I had Jack come in and lead us around again.  But this time instead of just one lap each way, we did lots of walking and stopping and even turned  and reversed.  Corey was 98% calm.  He raised his head a couple times and I felt his neck tense once, but he didn’t take a bad step or do a single thing wrong.  

At the end, we posed for some photos and then he offered to walk across the round pen to visit Jack.  So, we got our first solo steps in.  I know at least  one of the other trainers is trotting on her horse, but Corey still feels SO wobbly, I am not going to push it.  I will do more work with the bamboo pole to get him moving off its touch, then I can carry it and replicate the cues and see if he figures out what I am asking for. 

As I led him out, I decided to give him a little rinse off- it was hot and he actually had a little sweat mark.  He was not initially afraid of the hose or the stream of water, until Mr Curious stuck his nose in the water and scared himself!  He pulled away, trotted off about 50 feet and then stopped to eat grass.  I easily caught him and led him back over, but he didn’t want to walk back up to the hose.  Finally Jack brought the hose to him, with the end turned off so it was just dripping.  And he was able to drip water all over Corey’s left side.  Then he switched sides and with the water pressure on very low, he got water on the right side as well.  Corey was suspicious but did not overly resist.  I would consider it our first ‘battle’ but it was pretty low key.  He really did try to leave several times, but after the first break, I put the lunge line on so I had more control.  We finished with carrots and lots of praise and I know tomorrow will be easier.  This horse is smart and thinks and if it doesn’t hurt him, then it is OK with him.  

It can be easy to forget that this is a 3 yr old stallion who was running wild just 2 ½ weeks ago.  It is incredible to see him evolve into a willing partner who is calm and curious and fun to work with.  I really do think the sky is the limit.