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Post by zeesmom on Jun 10, 2007 21:53:19 GMT -5
Here are a few picutures of Sampson renamed Orion. The first one is of his first night in MT. He is a little wide eyed and exhausted. The next from about three weeks ago. He has just learned to target his target stick. And the last is of Orion and his new buddy Indy. Once introduced to the herd he really mixed things up. I had hoped he would just ease right in but he however had other ideas. We now have relative calm after several weeks of upheaval and slightly studdy behavior. It has taken some time to get used to having a baby around! I couldn't ask for a more curious, interested and all around fun little horse. He has been learning lots of new things like, backing on cue, giving to pressure, lowering his head, getting out of my space and off of my toes , standing for grooming, wearing a surcingle and learning to move away from me. We have also been visiting and revisiting picking up his feet after he "softly" kicked the farrier during his trim. After shedding his lighter colored winter coat he is now a gorgeous steely grey color. Such fun! Sarah in MT
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Post by cardicorgi on Jun 12, 2007 11:49:45 GMT -5
Thanks so much for the update and the photos, it sounds like Orion will flourish in your hands! Can't wait to see more of him - and best of luck (and congratulations)!
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Post by schwung on Jun 13, 2007 13:56:04 GMT -5
He looks fantastic!! Thank you so much for the wonderful update and photos!
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Post by zeesmom on Jun 18, 2007 12:08:35 GMT -5
Here are more pictures of Ri taken over the weekend. He has put on the pounds with all of our spring grass. He continues to make me smile! He is such a little imp. These are some grooming shots. I try to work him at liberty often. I find it helps me gauge how well I am doing as a trainer - keeping him interested and connected in the face of distractions. He has done such a good job of standing still and remaining in the game. He is quite relaxed with all touching and grooming procedures now. and picking his feet His first saddling went very well. He took it all in stride - occasionally reaching around for a good sniff. Turns out my wintec doesn't fit him - I need to try the wide gullet. This soft saddle does the trick for now. I want to give him another year to grow before I start riding him - so this summer he gets lots of ground work and walks. and here he is relaxed and happy- gosh he is cute! And then I asked him to move away a little. I am currently teaching him to change gait on cue.
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Post by safehorses on Jun 18, 2007 13:54:51 GMT -5
He looks wonderful! I'm so happy you are enjoying working with him and I'm thrilled that you've posted such glowing updates here. I can never get enough of those! Thank you!
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jolt1
New BB Member
Posts: 35
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Post by jolt1 on Jun 18, 2007 14:37:06 GMT -5
Please make sure you get a saddle that fits. HE is definately cute. I recommend Crates saddles. If there is a tack shop around where you live, trailer him down there and have them try on their steel frames. It will show you how the saddle fits. I highly recommend that. We've had so many horses come to us because they are bucking. We take a look at their saddle on the horse and show them that it is the saddle. Another way to see if your saddle fits, is put your hand underneath the saddle resting just above the shoulder, and turn the horses head to the side that you are standing on and see if you get pinched. Do the same on the back and have someone sit in the saddle, if you feel a pinch the saddle does not fit.
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Post by zeesmom on Jun 18, 2007 16:37:14 GMT -5
Thanks Jolt - I will look into the saddle you suggested. I try to be overly cautious when it comes to saddle fit. If the wide gullet doesn't work for him it is off to ebay for the Wintec! Right now I am very impressed with the reviews for the sensation saddle. I won't be too disapointed if I can't get the wintec to fit him properly and am forced to buy a sensation! The cashel I have right now is not good for long rides - it tends to drag on the withers. I cut out a channel for the spine and that helps. At least it keeps the saddle directly off of the spine - but the withers are still a problem. I imagine it will be okay for light rides. But I don't plan on riding him at all this year (well I might hop on a time or two . I might be weird but I find saddle fitting a fascinating subject! So much so that I would love to do a clinic or work with a saddle fitter for awhile.
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Post by trillium on Jun 19, 2007 7:19:34 GMT -5
The scenery in your pictures is georgerous. Where do you live? Your Samson is very cute too. I love his color.
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Post by zeesmom on Jun 19, 2007 11:05:18 GMT -5
I live in Missoula, MT and my horses live about 15 minutes away on a gorgeous 20 acre ranch that my friend owns.
It really is a beautiful place especially this time of year - everything is still green. In fact too much green for the horses - keeping them from getting too much grass is an ongoing concern.
My horses have much better scenery than I do. I live in town!
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Post by pdevlieg on Jun 19, 2007 23:45:16 GMT -5
He looks so wonderful. Tuned in to you and paying so much attention! I do like the Parelli games, I think they help build a good relationship with the horse and a strong foundation.
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Post by zeesmom on Jul 26, 2007 10:56:55 GMT -5
Because of our heat wave - ongoing temps in the high 90's to 100's acckkk! I have given Ri a few weeks of R&R. Last night I took him out to work with him and he did great. Picked up right where we left off. My husband came out with me to get a few pics and was impressed with his progress. Mind you it doesn't look like much in the pictures but I tend to take the approach of more ground work is better! Caution: He is fat! Now I have a super easy keeper and a super difficult keeper Now that the pastures are burnt to a crisp by the never ending heat I can better monitor is weight. It seems to happen overnight. Here is a picture of me tying the lead rope. Ri has a tendency to cut corners while being led and slam his shoulder into you. He doesn't seem to know how to walk in a straight line and how to monitor his movements so we work a lot on walking with me in his own space! and here you can see his tendency to lean in He would also be perfectly happy if I allowed him to stand on top of me and let him crawl right into my pocket So we also work on backing away from me and staying away. He is learning the hand signal for stay! Forgive those blinding white things extending from the bottom of my pants they are my legs! Despite the summer heat - they don't get out much! I continue to enjoy Ri so much. All who meet him are smitten! Sarah in MT
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Post by zeesmom on Sept 26, 2007 19:25:39 GMT -5
Ri and I had a big day today. It was his first ride! I have been working with him this summer mostly on teaching him to stay the heck off of me (he is the literal pocket pony - no boundaries!) and have saddled him and taken him for walks. I decided that he (mostly I) was ready for me to hop on so I enlisted a friend's help and we did a little bareback session in the round pen. He was perfect and the whole thing was completely non eventful! He thought it was very curious that he could not reach me. He turned and touched my feet and smelled my feet and backed a little until he finally decided that no matter what he did I was not going to become easier to reach. We explored some go forward and some stop. He is much better on the stop than the go forward but he will get there. Here are a couple of pics - a very unflattering one of me on him and the other just a cute head shot. Sarah
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Post by safehorses on Sept 26, 2007 20:32:20 GMT -5
Congrats Zeesmom!! And I am so happy your back with an update...he looks great!
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Post by cat67 on Sept 26, 2007 20:43:12 GMT -5
Very cool! I like exactly what you're doing...keep it calm and easy for him, Dr. Cook's bridle, bareback, no drama...I like that kind of training. He didn't even think to have a bad reaction because you kept everything non-threatening for him.
Stop is more important than go. Go will come!
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Post by schwung on Sept 26, 2007 22:25:48 GMT -5
This horse is just so cute and I love your pictures and training techniques. You have taken it slow and it has paid off!
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