Getting better!

Yesterday Siren and I went about our usual business of working to get better at all of our skills. She has been getting much better at lunging! She does not have many problems with this any more. It took a little bit of energy on my part to encourage her to lope, but other than that, very good! She no longer tries to stop and go the other way. In hand, she has also become a pro at trotting and stopping and backing with me. The one task we have been working on is to side pass over something. She side-passes great, until there is a pole that she has to go over. She is getting it! We also practiced her bow! Siren is so adorable and smart! Currently, she is loving the extra brushing that comes with the shedding! I hope that the next month includes some good excitement and great progress!

Reflection, a necessity for moving forward

I want to take a step back today. I am not going to just discuss the typically happy-go-lucky life of living with a weanling. I want to share something that has to do with not just her, but all of my horses, and every horse that I have encountered. These thoughts today were triggered from a few different sources of which I can not pinpoint just one. Perhaps from the misfortunate moments encountered today, and perhaps by just looking at and admiring the beauty of being a partner with such amazing beings. Their instinct and passion is simply awe inspiring. Anyway, on with my point. If you have been following along with my blog, then one, thank you, and two, you know that I have shared that I was disappointed with Siren for a few days now. Today, I attended a show with Atticus and experienced the same feelings on a stronger level due to lack of attention and, on a few occasions, dangerous acts. At first, with both horses, I was upset, as almost any human with raw emotion would be. I want them to perform at their best, to show how hard we work, to show that they are both capable and intelligent! Instead they did not. They showed, not those aspects to everyone else, but a greater lesson to me alone. It is hard to step back and remember who these animals that we truly love are. Independent, strong, and instinctive creatures who all have different personalities and minds of their own. We forget that they are not acting up, they are acting the same way that we would if we were in their positions. I am not saying that they should be allowed to act inappropriately, but I am saying that they should be allowed understanding and forgiveness. I want to express how thankful I am for my horses behaving lately in a way in which I describe as "acting up" because I truly needed the reminder that you are horses and can not be expected, just as no one should, to be perfect. Their poor behavior does not show that we are weak as a team, or that I am an unfit rider or they an unfit horse, but that we are brave enough to try and that we have much to work on, that we are not handed perfection, but handed the ability to possess the a smile and a drive to move forward to accomplish our goals. I step back to look at the fact that I have been truly blessed, for my horses teach me lessons that no books or teacher ever could. They teach my to endure the hardest tasks, yet the ability to love as much as any one could ever love.

With success, comes roadblocks

It can't be all fun and games when training a baby. Even one as adorable as little Siren. She lunged beautifully the other day and went through the tarp well. However, she was a little stinker when it came to some other things. She was getting sassy when it came to doing things what we learned a while ago, like moving off of pressure. Instead of moving away from pressure, she  was just leaned into me and refuse to move off of pressure. She also was not being cooperative when it came to picking up her feet. She kept trying to squirm around. It is okay though! She usually tries very hard for me! I hope this little mood swing of hers does not last long! 

The feeling of true success!

For a short while now, I have been working on something with Siren. I am not sure if Siren likes the mental stimulation of learning new tricks or if she just loves the praise that she gets afterwards. Never the less, after much hard work and a great deal of patience, we have accomplished our first trick! She can now bow! She is so smart and picked this trick up so quickly! I am super proud!

With growth comes so much!

Siren is blossoming into such a wonderful horse! Physically, she has gotten so big! She has already outgrown two blanket sizes and is ready for to move from the weanling sized halter to the yearling sized halter! She is learning how to tackle more obstacles and accomplish greater tasks. Just yesterday, I decided to rig up some fun obstacles to take her through. A friend and I tied up a tarp to resemble a sort of, tarp wall, for her to walk through. She was so brave and walked through very well! (when she was not trying to nibble and tear down the tarp! Haha!) I also had her play with scary pool noodles and wear them on her back, which again, she did not mind. Her favorite activity was hopping over the line of ground poles! My father and I plan to create a few new obstacles for her as well. Such as a horse teeter totter and a horse pedestal. She has also become very well behaved and tolerant in many situations like when there are children and dogs running around and other riders all in one arena. She is very cooperative and non- skittish when it comes to the chaos. She is outgrowing many of her poor bad habits such as nibbling on people and trying to sneak out of her stall when someone opens the door to enter. Luckily, she is not growing up too fast! She still loves to run and play like a baby! She chases me across the pasture and she still whinnies to me when I walk into the barn or call her name. I love having her around! She is the sweetest little girl who does not possess a mean bone in her body! I look forward to working on more with her!