Protecting your herd of 2...a lesson in leadership.

I set out to give ONE horse a bath, and thru a series of events, moved up a to a whole new level leadership....of course, not before screwing it up royally first.

So we got a new horse 3days ago, and Snooke passed away 2weeks ago, she was the leader of the herd.  Rose has done a good job being the leader since snookie has passed, but this new horse, Syrah (my latest rescue) has caused quite a ruckus!  72hrs of an all out battle for world domination.  Rose has been HIGHLY protective of Cha'cote. And at times tries to protect spirit, but has yet to master, protecting two horses at once.  and spirit being the 11hh Casanova, little will stop him from wooing syrah. At this point, neither Rose nor Syrah are 'leader' of the whole herd, but Syrah (a 15.2 american cream draft horse) is alpha, but Rose is still leader of Cha'cote and Spirit.  Spirit is trying to be leader of Syrah and have his own herd, and sometimes tries to keep Rose away from her.  I am learning a ton about the water hole rituals and herd culture, now that there is a whole new dynamic to the herd.

there has been much discussion round the world about the difference between an alpha and a passive leader.  that the dominant horse is not always the leader.  that got me thinking about what IS a leader.  by it's very definition, it is someone who has commanding authority or influence, therefore, you cannot 'lead' if no one follows.  So being a leader is about more than domination.  BUT....the definition of alpha is simply....something that is first.  So I guess you CAN have an alpha who is not the leader, and you can have a leader who is also alpha.  Snookie was both.  Rose is not.  So far, and this could change in the future.  Syrah has asserted her self as someone who gets food first, and does not move when rose asks, but everyone follows Rose.  No one follows Syrah

So I wanted give Cha'cote a bath.  Since his reintroduction into a herd, 2 months ago, after 7ys of isolation, he gives the other horses no reason to challenge him, and runs at the very sight of them.  He has not given me any trouble catching him, until last night.  I walked in, and Rose was desperate for my attention.  Following me around, gently asking for some love, and probably protection, as she has taken quite a beating. Ordinarily this is not an issue, but since she has been chasing Cha'cote around for 3dys, keeping him away from Syrah.....If she was part of a package deal with me.....he wanted no part of ME.  I couldn't get within 20ft of him.  When I finally did, before I got the halter tied, rose and syrah trapped us in the corner, he bolted away from me, and with all the feet flying around lately, my life was more important that trying to stop him from leaving.  that was mistake #1 as far as cha'cote was concerned....something I would come to realize about an hour later.  in the moment....i was OBLIVIOUS to domino effect this was about to create.

since i coudn't catch cha'cote, and couldn't get rid of Rose, I decided to halter rose and bathe her first.  spirit left the pasture with us, and when I was done, i turned her loose with him in the yard.  During the bath, syrah was noticeably upset that they left her.  So after i turned rose loose, I got cha'cote, and left the gate open for syrah to come out too so she wouldn't be alone in there.  Mistake #2.  coming out the pasture is a 15x15ft corridor between the above ground pool and my hay shed.  rounding the pool is a corridor between the pool and the back patio.  between that is a tarp on the ground to walk on.  the bath area is on the other side of it, and cha'cote was unsure of crossing it.  we were making progress, albeit slow, when syrah comes up behind him, scaring him.  I was unable to prevent this.  Mistake #3.  still oblivious to chain of events that were now quickly adding up.  she left to find the other horses, and we continued working on the tarp.  next thing I know, a thundering herd comes up behind him, again, me unable to stop it, he finally had enough of me and this crap, bolted, and I had to let him go.  rose and syrah fought over him for the next 5 min, chasing him around the house, down into a ditch, cornered him in a small space(4 horses in a 10x20 dead end), and as he tried to get out, they were stepping on the lead rope, feet started flying, and alot of squeeling.  he was terrified, and there was nothing i could do to help him. finally he made it out of there, and they chased him back into the pasture, i closed the gate, and then they chased him around for another 5 min before i could get them off of him AND get him to trust me enough to get close enough to grab the rope.

Now for mistke #4...my husband walks out with the carrotstick/string and proceeds to "help me" by keeping the path clear for me to get him out the gate.  I go thru first, and my husband was unable to keep them away, and he bolted AGAIN.  now I spend another 5 min trying to catch him....trying to also keep my husband in line, the herd in line, and somehow convince cha'cote, that he could trust me, AGAIN, to let me catch him.  now the issue was soley his.  not the other horses chasing him away from me.  sighs....i finally got him caught, barked something at my husband, retrieved the carrot stick......had to 'handle' my husband softly because i didn't want to squash his new found horse whisperer ego, not get a rope burn or my skull crushed in.  it took ALL of this for me to realize.....hello you friggin moron.....PROTECT YOUR HERD OF TWO!..........screw everyone and everything else and PROTECT YOUR HERD OF TWO!

YOURSELF!

I was so worried about everything else, I was not IN the moment or the vicinity of decent frame of mind, and missed a vital cardinal rule. they will not let you trap them (halter and rope) if you then do not respect your new responsibility of protecting them.  you take away their ability to leave, so you dang well better never let them down when they need you.  there is no way around the fact that he needed me, and I let him down.  it wouldn't have been such a big deal with many other horses.  but this one...I blew it...and I blew it big time.

I had my husband man the gate, as it is a tight mental 'squeeze' as it is for cha'cote, and with the current situation, i may as well be asking him to jump into the grand canyon.  i led him around the pasture, tagging anything in my way...mainly rose and syrah.  I needed to prove to cha'cote that I and I alone, am going to protect him.  That he not only can trust me to protect him, but that I have good ideas too.  because he was pretty convinced at this point that I had the skills for neither.  I was successful, to my surprise, in keeping the herd more than 30ft away while we approached and exited the gate.....whew!  it was not easy, and we had to make several attempts, with me spinning and chasing them away, but it did alot for our relationship.

never before did he really NEED me to be a leader and 'protect' him.  when snookie was around, she never attacked him, nor would she let anyone else.  i can't even remember the last time i had to walk into a pasture with a carrot stick, for either my protection or a horses.  it just never occurred to me that I would need it.  so for now, I will have to always walk in with one when i need to do something with cha'cote, even if it is to just pet him.  i need to prove to him that I am a LEADER, and everyone else needs to learn that we are OFF LIMITS when i am with him. period.  no if's, and's or butt's about it.

I am the leader.  ME....not Rose...Not Syrah.....ME.  And I think after the justice I delivered yesterday......they know it.  I just need to prove it day in and day out, never letting a moment sneak up on me when I am not prepared....basically....always be prepared.

to balance it out, i will spend undemanding time, sharing territory with them, just hanging out....like a leader does when they don't have to LEAD.

Snookie never would have let this happen. So i guess I will forever be asking my self in situations....what would snookie do?



Totally forgot to mention the fairy tale ending!


When I was all done with his bath.  I took him to the pasture, and took the halter off, and we walked around at liberty together, moving all the other horses in the pasture!  finally he was done and left me quietly....


Rose was staring at me, begging to see me.  I waved her over and she came straight away to me, and we did the same thing.  except we did  not push chacote around.


it meant alot to me to have this special time with each of them, and i think it meant alot to them too.


Savvy On
Michelle

Good Golly.....Meet Miss Molly

My newest rescue. I got a call about a woman losing her house and only had days to find a home for her. I went out expecting to find a draft cross nag, and imagine my surprise when I see this gorgeous cream beauty. Turns out, she is a rare and endangered breed, an American Cream Draft Horse. I will take special care to not only keep her needs and well being at the fore front as I find her a new home, but also the survival of the breed. She appears to be the rare 'champagne' color, making her just that much more special to her breed, as they are all suppose to be champagne, however, due to low population numbers, they are allowing mares with the 'cream' gene and black skin to be registered along with the 'champagne' gene and pink skin mares, until the breed is stablized. Stallions must be pink skinned.

Here is some pics and video of joining the herd.

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The new herd dynamics

Well, now that Snookie is gone, I am left to ponder how the dynamics will change.  Cha'cote was finally in a place where he was not terrified of the girls, and would rest with everyone under Snookies favorite tree, with Snook and Rose just a few feet away.  He also was getting to the hay before Spirit about 50% of the time, without Spirit dominating it away from him.  I used to feed Snookie and Rose at one end of the pasture and Cha'cote and Spirit at the other.  Because I was always feeding enough hay for Snookie to never be hungry.....everyone else is fat porkers.  Now....left with feeding them the proper amounts, if I split the pasture in two, there are not enough flakes for them to eat together and someone would always be left out.  Last night I fed them all under the same tree, and Rose was not quite sure what to do, it was not her normal place to eat.  She went from pile to pile, with the other two scatter about waiting for her to make up her mind.

I decided this morning to feed them all in Snookies spot....and cha'cote was afraid to go over there.  So I went out and walked there and he followed.  I moved Spirit so cha'cote would feel comfortable to stay, and it seems to be working out.  Rose is not pushing them around....yet....so I think they will be ok this morning.  I feel like it is important, in the face of great change, that I feed them together, so they can bond as a new herd with a new leader.  Should they squable and someone be shoved of the food for good, I will re think it for sure.  But for now, it is sink or swim.....this is your new herd....work it out.

Rose is still calling for Snookie and is looking to me for comfort.  I hate that I wont be here to be a part of the new bond, but maybe it is better that way.  It is what it is, and I think we all will survive.

I think now that Snookie is gone, Rose may come back to me as the leader.  Fingers crossed I get my levels horse back.
Savvy On
Michelle

Euthanasia....what you need to know if you love your horse.

I had contacted the organizer of the euthanasia clinic a while back regarding Snookie, and she contacted me last night, ironically, to let me know of an upcoming clinic near me.  I let her know what was going on, and sent her a link to Snookies video.  She was unable to leave a comment, so she emailed me and asked me to share this. 

"This is part of being a good horse owner. The horse owner is a guardian, we fence them in and feed them well and care for them so we can love them longer . With our love and care they live longer so we also have to be prepared for doing what is right for the horse and not what we want.
There is nothing and I mean nothing sadder about horses than the regret someone has when they go to see their friend and the horse has been down all night struggling and paddling in the dirt or mud to get up and died alone.

What you are doing is giving her a send off to heaven with love surrounded by friends it is a gentle end which is what every horse owner should want for the noblest animals on earth."

Deb Stewart

Back in the Saddle Project

Thank You Deb.  While she is not in some horribly injured state, that would have obviously made this decision easier for me, to see her struggling was killing me.  As it is, it took me 9mos to make this decision.  And for every day I put it off, is just another day of selfishness.  Being too weak and not having the courage is just another way to strip her of another ounce of dignity.  I could not, and would not, want her to suffer a tragedy, waiting for me to get home and find her, and put her out of her misery.  It has taken everything I have to see this through, and in a few minutes it will be all over.  Deb put in words, my hopes, fears, and love.

A quote from BLACK BEAUTY

The horse was an old worn out chestnut, with an ill kept coat and bones that showed plainly through it. The knees knuckled over, and the forelegs were very unsteady.There was a hopeless look in the dull eye that I could not help noticing, and then, as I was thinking where had I seen that horse before, she looked full at me and said,  "Black Beauty, is that really you?"

 

It was Ginger! But how changed! The beautifully arched and glossy neck was now straight and lank and fallen in; the clean straight legs and delicate fetlocks were swelled. The face, once so full of spirit and life, was now full of suffering.

 

..."I wish the end was come, I wish I was dead. I have seen dead horses, and I am sure they do not suffer pain. I wish I may drop down dead and not be sent off to the knackers."

 

I was very much troubled, and I put my nose up to hers, but I could say nothing to comfort her. I think she was pleased to see me, for she said, "You are the only friend I ever had."

 

Just then her driver came up, and with a tug at her mouth, backed her out of the line and drove off, leaving me very sad indeed.

 

A short time after this, a cart with a dead horse in it passed our cab stand. The head hung out of the cart tail... It was a chestnut horse with a long thin neck. I saw a white streak down the forehead. I believed it was Ginger; I hoped it was, for then her troubles would be over.

 

Oh! If men were more merciful, they would shoot us before we came to such misery.

Savvy On

Michelle

The Greatest Horse to EVER live....Snookie

My beloved friend of 24ys is starting her next journey tomorrow.  At 27yo she just isn't doing well, and it breaks my heart to see her amazing spirit slowly leave her weakening body.  She is tired and is ready for a long peaceful nap. I see no need to make her beg me for it.

I was just some dumb kid when we met, and she was a crazy lunatic laid up with a track injury.  But she was so beautiful I could not take my eyes off of her.  I have never seen another chestnut with the striking flaming copper color she used to be.  It never occurred to me that I really knew little about horses and was about to strap my self to a nuclear rocket.  My momma always said...."stupid is as stupid does".  I muddled thru allot of hard times over the years to be able to keep her, to be able to understand her, to be able to heal her many injuries, and to wait out the long year to know if she would survive the founder than ended our dressage career.

We have had some wild and wacky adventures and still managed to become so in tune with each other, that at times I lost my self in her movement and could no longer differentiate between my body and hers.  It was always so spiritual that it seemed like a dream.  The harmony of our thoughts was amazing and mostly we did not need to 'speak' as we knew what the other was thinking. I will never 'know' a horse like I know her.  I can predict her behavior with life saving accuracy.

She was a city girl through and through and honestly detested anything 'country'.  Her fear of cows, pigs, sheep, deer and turkeys is unrivaled.  As the quintessential Extreme RBE with a spirit fuse a mile long....often it would take her days to come off an adrenaline high, all for something as trivial as a perceived boogy man hiding behind the garbage can.  She knew where it belonged and if it moved so much as an inch, it must be him, there to ambush her while she was not looking, so she was ever so vigilant to keep her eyes peeled on high alert at ALL times.  She knew the exact location of every others boarders brush box, tack trunk and other barn trinkets, and was most proud of herself to alert me all to the changes that go on at night in the barn after we humans leave. Which made boarding in a 40 stall barn a bit of panic palooza for her everyday. Imagine the joy ride I got when a tack closet large enough to be a horse casket arrived.  She was convinced it was for her, and I didn't see that end of the arena for months!

Despite owning the 'craziest' horse on the planet, she was gentler than a kitten where children were concerned.  She babysat all my friends and their kids, and we would have to nearly beat her to get her to jog if they were aboard.  If they were leading her, she would always put her head down low, so she could see them well and take special care not to step on them.  So it was always amazing to me, her hatred for men.  Whom if standing too close, she would conveniently not see them while looking away, and step right on their foot.  Pretending to be completely unaware of the screaming and shoving, she would shift all her weight to that food and grind it in as hard as she could.  As I would approach she always had the 'who me?' look as I removed yet another soon to be ex-boyfriend from underneath her.  After my first date with my husband, I told him if he wanted to see me again, it would have to be at the barn.  He complied, and as we walked with Snookie thru the vineyard holding hands, I told him, in no uncertain terms, would any man ever come between her and I.  18ys later he knows I was not speaking lightly.  And even though he affectionately calls her 'the old bitch bit me again'....he has nearly killed himself on many occasions building her the fences and barns.

Snookie has a way of creeping into your heart by running it over at a dead gallop.  You can't help but fall in love with her sweet and gentle ways....Even though every one knows she may trample you if she thinks her life depends on it.  It is her belief that it is every man, dog and horse for them selves....and she takes care of SNOOKIE.  She would spook at everything and it was your job to figure out how to stay on if you wanted not to walk back home on your own two feet.  Should you fail in that task, no worries, she would be patiently waiting for you back at home....wondering what took you so long.  One time I fell off and woke up an hour later with her hovering over me....."Pansy....what part of hold on don't you understand?"....guess I took too long.

We already had an amazing relationship when I set out to prove some fellow boarders wrong that natural horsemanship was crap.  To watch me torture her thru the first year, knowing I was an accomplished horse woman already, must have been a comedy for my neighbors.  Snookie was none too happy with the carrot stick and me being 'persistent'.  Finally one day she gave me the 'look'......"Get better fast or die"....she was pretty serious about that too.  That is when I was introduced to Parelli, and much to her relief my savvy grew quickly and she didn't have to kill me.  This will sound weird, but I could have passed level 3 (old green levels) about 2ys into it, had I used Snookie, but at the time, I felt it would be cheating.  Don't think I haven't kicked my self in the ass everyday of the last 8ys that I didn't do it with her when I had the chance.  We already rode bridle less before I started NH, and had the finesse as we were well into 3rd level dressage when she foundered...and my dreams came to a screeching halt. Thankfully she was here to help me get started on a new dream though, and it has been just as wondrous a journey because she was always there by my side.

In her final years, she has been an excellent herd leader, and has been teaching Rose the tricks of the trade.  She will be passing the torch to Rose tomorrow, and if she is half the horse Snookie was, she will make a fine leader.

She has taught me about unconditional love and acceptance, not only of others but of myself as well.  She has held that mirror up to my face countless times, and showed me the truest parts of myself, whether or not I wanted to see it.  She was honest, and never lied.  If I didn't do it right, she would tell me right then and there.  More often than not I ate dirt as a part of my 'lesson'.  But thankfully, she was unconditionally forgiving of my shortcomings and mistakes, and never once held a grudge.  She lived life in the moment, and never took advantage of my lack of knowledge.

I think back to my youth, in my bedroom in town, drifting off to sleep dreaming of horses. horse pictures all over my walls, doodles of horses on all my school books. hoping that someday, i could have a horse of my own. when driving with my mom through the hillside, I would imagine I was riding a horse in the field we were driving by, cantering and jumping all the fences. i would and still do, get whiplash if I actually ever see a horse. My friend and I would be playing like we were horses at recess on the playgound, while other girls were already worrying about what to wear. I wish I could speak to that little girl and let her know, don't worry, someday your dreams will come true. someday you will have the horse of your dreams. someday you will have more horses than you know what to do with. you wont go to the olympics like you will later dream of doing, but this dream that you dream tonight, WILL come true. you will have amazing relationships with horses, achieve things you will never dream possible, and meet so many friends along the way, you wont know what to do with yourself.  so close your eyes and go to sleep.....otherwise someday may never come.


Good bye my friend
We have reached the end of the trail

RIP My Friend Snookie ~ Video

Snookies last day is this friday 7-15-11. We have shared an amazing 23yr Journey. Please wish her well on her voyage over the rainbow bridge.

I want to thank Matt, Barb, Doc and Maryanne at West 12 Ranch for breeding me the most perfect horse, for if she had been a good race horse......she would never have been mine.
I am still working on this video, still needs a tweak here and there, but this is good enough for now. It is long....sorry, hard to cram 23ys into a short video. My best friend took us to the river sunday and took some really nice pics. Thank you Kandi.

Savvy On Snookie
May your fields never again be fenced.
I love you!

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Major pest explosion creates set backs

So check this out...as IF....my life isn't an annoying enough interuption to my horse journey....the stinking weather has wreaking havoc around these parts.  The long wet winter, then the long wet spring, cut WAY into summer, including snowing in JULY when it should be 105*.......has caused an explosion of all sorts of pests.  Normally one species a year gets out of control, and it is a different species each summer.....last year it was the flies.....but this year makes last year seem tame.  The flies are beyond out of control and my spalding fly predators coupled with fly spray, are barely making a dent.  My horses water trough is full of aproximately a hundred tadpoles, so at some point we are going to have a frog/toad explosion....I just don't have the heart to dump them out and kill them.....they eat FLIES.  I am hearing horrid reports of the rattlesnake boom, but fortunately have yet to see one myself (always a hope regardless of the situation).  As if all that isn't enough, we got home on sunday after boating to discover our house engulfed in ants trying to escape the heat.  They were in the pantry and all the food in there, in the laundry room and kitchen, a trail across my desk and back down to the dog food that the dog understandably stopped eating.  In the hallway and bathrooms, and all over my bedroom night stand.  The next to worst, is the leave cutter bugs, that normally do not come in the house, that are also in alarming numbers this season, have decided the warmth of my tv screen and my body at night.  It is bad enough that I have a phobia of spiders crawling on me in my sleep, to now have these stupid lawn bugs wake me up crawling on my leg or something.  So now for my poor horses misfortune.....JELLOW JACKETS.  Living in the country has thickened my city skin, and I no longer run wild screaming at the sight of an innocent honey be....but I have yet to get over my fear of the thier evil cousins the jackets and hornets.  OMG, they are off the hook right now.  It all started when I went to feed my horses sunday morning and found two yellow jackets sitting on my hay.  I screamed for my husband and the fight has been on since then.  There was a huge nest in my hay shed, an even bigger one in my tack shed, an even bigger one in the tack room of my horse trailer, not to mention the couple dozen more that are in between  the shingles of my roof.  I estimate that there were close to 200+ jackets buzzing about my house that morning.  We got some spray and my husband knocked down all the nests he could physically reach.  We hung a trap and hoped to catch the ones that didn't die from the spray.  Well it has not helped the horses water trough at all.  We caught a few under the tree, but last night there were still about 30+ hovering over thier water, with the horses in the shadows just watching, parched and desperate for water.  I moved the trap near the trough last night after the jackets nested down for the night.  I just called my son at lunch today to walk out and see if we had achieved any success.  Of course NO.  So I googled "jellow jacket trap" to see what solutions I could find to this problem.  I was surprised by what I found and hope to have success tomorrow with this FREE home made trap that I will make tonight when I get home.  Here is a video I found on one version, and here is an article on the other version.  Similar, but a bit different, so I will try both, as the commercial brand is NOT sufficient this nasty out of control season. I swear if fall rolls around and the turantulas are out of control too....I will just faint.  What does all this have to do with setting me back on my journey you ask......well it is too damn hot with venomous and annoying pests buzzing about for me to be outside!
Savvy On
Michelle

Hey check this out.....3 Cynthia Royal dvd's for only $19.95 !!!!!

It appears that Cynthia Royals dvd's are now available for download with an e-price of only $19.95.....TOTAL....for all three dvd's.  Holy super savings Batman.....You're not a very bright person if you don't take advantage of this one!  This is a dvd set that I gave 5*'s to.  Hurry Hurry before the price goes back up!   This includes the 2 disk set of her Malibu CA clinic, and her bridleless riding disk. Now, I did purchase this and am downloading it now.  A few things to keep in mind.....well really just one....your computer.  You will need about 6000mb of free space on your hard drive.  the dvd's are divided into chapters, and each one takes about 5min to download on my computer....a few of them are larger files and took about 20min.....but my computer is not the most, 'technologically up to date' thing you will ever find......and your speeds/download times may vary.  Me personally, I have an external, usb extra hard drive with 3tb....yes...terra bytes....of portable storage. It will hold about 300 dvds or about a million pictures or half million songs.  I know...a bit of overkill, but my techno memories will last longer than me, and I will never lose 3000 (non backed up) pictures, and 1200 songs, again to a crashed hard drive.  But that is just me.  Surprisingly the storage disk was only a little over a $100 on ebay. Anyways, just keep your computer in mind when ordering.  the sections come zipped (compressed file).

Also, when you order, the dvd's are available after PAYMENT is confirmed.  it took about 5 hours for me to get my email with instructions.  Not bad, considering the amazing financial savings.
Click here to get straight to the order page

Savvy On
Michelle

L4 ~ Zone5 draw backward Video

Well, I think we are getting a view of our once lost relationship! This is a VERY short video. I havn't really played with Rose for about 9 months. Kills me to even think of that. But she offered this and I took it, like a thief!

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Big news on the Mustang Rescue!

Cha'cote is finally in a herd again. It has been a long 7.5ys of solitude for him. Even though he passed OLL3 in 6mos, it has taken me nearly a year and half after I got him, to rehab him back into a herd (weather played a big part) He finally gave me the green light 2 wks ago, and Sunday was sink or swim day. He dog paddled! The mares are not interested in him, but he steers clear of them anyways, and Spirit got a buddy to swish flies off his face. He has been imprisoned, having never committed any crime and Savvy gave him a pardon. While he will never run free in the wild again, at least he can begin being a horse again. Three cheers for Cha'cote!!! Hip, Hip, Horray!....

While this video is not the most ‘exciting’ thing on the planet….just think of it as the happy ending to an Animal planet Sunday Special……Local woman does good! There is some good horse/herd behavior in there to watch, and also you get to see RBI’s in action. You can also see some WHR's leading from behind! It is a good day for my new Friend…..rejoice and enjoy on his behalf…..he IS happy…..exhausted…..but happy!
Savvy On My Friends……..Savvy On!
Michelle

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Well in case anyone is wondering where I disapeared to....

I found this great rock to crawl under and got stuck there.  My life fell apart and some things needed tending to.  The good news is that Cha'cote is making great progress despite my doing nothing with him.  He is coming from a whistle, sometimes even runs to me.  He also has found his playful side.  He has finally decided that the herd has something to offer him.....FUN.  He has even had a fun loving bucking sessions with them.  Of course he scared the crap out of himself while doing it, but I think he is ready to be turned out with the herd.  The weather has been miserable for california.  It is JUNE and it is still raining and SNOWing!  So I think, come hell or high waters....literally....he is going out with the herd this weekend or next...for good. I just didn't want to throw him out with out shelter, when shelter is all he has known for 7 years.  I am thinking of splitting the pasture into two sections, half for Snookie and Rose and half for Cha'cote and Spirit.  That will give him a chance to learn how to play, without the threat of the girls attacking him.

I am going to the horse expo this weekend despite the virus outbreak.  My friend and I are going to bleach up before we come home and of course will not be touching ANY horses or shaking ANY hands while we are there.  I can't believe they are going thru with this thing, given the nature of how many horses are coming from all over the united states.  But they are, so I will be taking advantage of seeing my long lost horse buddy who moved away 8ys ago.  I miss her desperately and hope she moves back some day.
Savvy On
Michelle

Deadly virus outbreak, imediatly stop touching any horse not your own.

OMG.....this is just one county away from me....infact three bordering counties.  Please read and spread the word FAST as you can spread it with your own hands by touching an infected horse or thier tack or buckets....and then bring it home to yours.  Be savvy and wash your hands and brushes and buckets, and quarantine your horses NOW.  There is NO cure or Vaccine for this.  This article was in our news paper yesterday morning.


Deadly virus sickens horses in Stanislaus County

By CAROL REITER

creiter@mercedsun-star.com

An outbreak of a highly contagious and possibly fatal virus in horses that started at a competition in Utah has claimed the life of at least one horse in California and one in Utah, and sickened at least four in Stanislaus County.

The equine herpes-1 infection showed up first at the National Cutting Horse Association's Western National Championships, held in Ogden, Utah, from April 30 to May 8. One of the big money winners at the show, a 7-year-old horse, was diagnosed May 9 with the virus in Colorado. Of the 500 horses at the event, at least two were positive for the virus, and one died. Fifty-four of the competitors were from California.

Steve Lyle, spokesman for the California Department of Food and Agriculture, said one horse in California was euthanized at a cutting horse event May 13 in Bakersfield. The horse had been to the Utah event and had severe neurological signs.





At a Glance

Murieta Equestrian Center in Rancho Murieta has announced that all horse events there will be canceled through June 7 because of the outbreak. The center had events scheduled every weekend.

________________________________________





"This is still all unfolding. There wasn't a confirmed case of this virus in California until Monday, and now we have 10," Lyle said Tuesday afternoon.

Four of those confirmed cases are from Stanislaus County. Dr. Carol Van Hoogmoed, a veterinarian at Monte Vista Equine Care in Turlock, said veterinarians at Taylor Veterinary Hospital in Turlock had treated at least one horse that tested positive for the virus. Horses in Kern, Placerville, Amador and Napa counties also tested positive.



Van Hoogmoed hasn't seen a case yet but believes there may be more horses that have been exposed to the virus that may come down with it.



And it can be deadly.



"There's a neurological form of the virus that can end up killing the horse," Van Hoogmoed said.



The virus is highly contagious and can spread quickly between horses or from contaminated feed, buckets or people's hands, Van Hoogmoed said.



The incubation period can range from two days to two weeks. One of the first signs is a horse will start running a fever. The horse also can have nasal discharge, a lack of coordination, hind-end weakness, inability to rise, lethargy and dribbling urine.



"There's no treatment for the virus, and there's no vaccine," Lyle said. Of the horses that come down with the neurological type of the virus, 30 percent will die.



In past years, cases showed up on the East Coast at horse race tracks. The horses were quickly quarantined, and the outbreaks were stopped.



But the Utah show had horses from 10 states competing, and when the show was over, the horses went home, possibly taking the virus with them.



The National Cutting Horse Association, which held the Utah event, said there are reports of cases not only in Colorado and California, but also in Washington, Oregon, Arizona and western Canada. The Washington Department of Agriculture has reported cases in Idaho and Utah.



The NCHA said its affiliates and other show producers in California, Montana, Oregon, Oklahoma, Texas, Wyoming, New Mexico, Washington and Nevada have canceled shows scheduled for this weekend.



Lyle said California's borders haven't been closed because of the outbreak, but the CDFA is evaluating options that could be considered if the outbreak becomes more serious. All California horses that have been in contact with an infected horse and show signs of the disease or test positive for it will be placed under a CDFA quarantine, Lyle said.



More severe restrictions could be on the horizon.



"We could consider a ban on all horse shows in the state," Lyle said. "Some events have already been canceled, but we haven't done that yet. But we do have the right to do it."



California is working with other states, and is asking horse owners to be aware of the signs and symptoms of the virus.



"We're telling horse owners who were at the Utah event to be very vigilant, and catch this right away," Lyle said. "And isolate any horses that were at the Utah cutting."



Reporter Carol Reiter can be reached at creiter@mercedsun-star.com or (209) 385-2486.





Read more: http://www.mercedsunstar.com/2011/05/18/1895405/deadly-virus-sickens-horses-in.html#ixzz1MiJBornu










__________



Another article from online The Record







Tue May 17 2011



Horses contract fatal virus at Utah competition













IDAHO FALLS, Idaho - Agriculture officials say horses in Canada and at least four Western states have contracted a fatal equine virus after attending a national competition in Utah.

An Idaho State Department of Agriculture spokeswoman told the Post Register that two cutting horses from Idaho have died from what appears to be Equine Herpes Virus-1.

So far, authorities believe it has infected horses in Idaho, Utah, Colorado, California and Canada. But Idaho state veterinarian Bill Barton says veterinarians across the country are being notified that animals in their states could be impacted as well.

Barton says the virus is easily spread because it can be airborne and transmitted by touch or through sharing brushes, bits or other equipment, but it doesn’t pose a risk to humans. Llamas and alpacas can also be infected.

The Associated Press

How I built a cheap and portable Round Pen.

The Picadero.....is DONE!!!! Check it out!

Total Cost: $118
Total time to Build: 5 Hours
Ease of use and relocation: EASY
Enjoyment level of use: Unconditionally, exponentially, limitless!

Now of course this is as 'low tech' and 'cheap' as I could get it done.....but it is functional and should provide me many hours of enjoyment as I explore the..... Waterhole Rituals / Hempfling / PNH L4 Liberty / Clicker training .... further this summer, and I am dying to get started.  Compared to the cost of a pipe panel round pen which can run from $600-$1200 this is a cost effective alternative.  I also considered 8x 20ft cattle panels at $25ea plus the cost of clips to connect them $20 would be cost effective, but not as easily moved from one location to another, BUT easier than a pipe panel pen to move for sure.  This is also a great way to NOT have to try to pound or beat a post into rock hard ground filled with rock hard ROCKS.

So here I am, with my limited but growing knowledge of cement, and may even have become the "expert" on cheap round pen construction....ROFLMAO!!!! HA HA HA

So Here are the two first buckets, that were suppose to be, mix in one, pour into/set-up/pop-out in the other....but I messed up by using too much water and created two $10 posts.  As each of 'these' buckets were $5 ea plus $3 ea for the posts plus $4 for a bag of cement.  The rest of the posts are much cheaper as I found cheaper buckets.  Gotta LOVE Wal-mart.

These buckets are found in the paint department.  The larger handle buckets were $1.83 each and the smaller ones were $.89 each.  I bought 12 for a total of  $14.65 + tax.  This makes my bucket purchase total = $25.  The step in poly posts were $3 x 14 = $42 and the electric tape was $30 for a 656ft roll and I bought 7 bags of 2/3 cubic foot size, cement at $4 bag = $28....However, with finding smaller buckets, I only used a total of 3 bags  = $12 for cement. That brings my total investment to $109 + $9 tax = $118 for a portable round pen/picadero.  Not bad huh?

Now as for ease of construction and time spent, it only took me 3 hours total to mix the cement and fill 14 buckets.  Time spent making my 10 foot strands of tape, that took me 2  hours, but that included time spent screwing up and starting over, but I think we can count it accurate. And after 24hrs set time, I am good to go set it up in it's designated area.  As for my mom's parking spot.....too bad ~ so sad ~ mama!
Don't forget to read the end for my corrections to my mistakes.

Now there is assuredly an even cheaper way to do this.  I was thinking supplement buckets, while coveted as feeding buckets, I am sure one could beg all your friends for their used buckets when they are done with them, plus your own, would take no time at all to collect 14 of them.  If one used poly hay bailing twine, you could round that up all over the place for free as well.  I have over a years worth bagged up in my back yard, and you are welcome to come by and take all you want....;). Cement is pretty cheap with small buckets, but sand or dirt could possibly do in a pinch, just would not survive the winter rains.  One could even get fancy and use potting soil and add flowers I guess.  That just leaves the matter of the posts.  I am sure there are alternatives to $3 fencing stakes, and I am sure one could be creative in this department as well.  Just don't ask me, if I could have thought of a cheaper way, I would have done it.  All in all, I would have to say that if you were creative and resourceful, I bet you could do this for free! 12 posts set 10ft apart makes a 30ft  square picadero or a 40 foot pen.
Don't forget to read the end for my corrections to my mistakes. It's pretty funny.

This type of construction allows for all types of terrain and shapes, and one does not need worry about the condition of the ground (for construction sake not horse soundness sake) or having a friend nearby every time it needs to be moved. Also, by having short 10ft strings looped to each post, you forgoe the headache of sagging lines, and a night mare of night mare when taking apart or changing shape or just moving part of it to use the space as a parking lot!  Using one long line can be a pain in the rear, and if a horse goe thru it, there is a better chance of it just popping apart, rather than stringing along behind them.  On THAT note, one does need a horse to respect fences for this to be advantageous and safe.  I would not recommend putting a flighty frightened horse in a pen like this, nor would I leave a horse unsupervised in it.  As always, use your head, and put both you and your horses safety first....and fun should follow.....not vet or hospital bills.  If desired, you could hook this up to a fence charger and actually use the electric tape as designed, but now you have to consider the cost of that, and the fact that in a small space, a horse being jolted with electicity is not a great idea with you inside.  Also, since you SHOULD be using this pen to create harmony and confidence in your horse, I do not know how 'comfortable' a horse might feel if he is worried about getting electrocuted.  Use your brain and choose wisely when it comes to electricity.  Ok now that the public safety announcement is over.....here are some links to where you can purchase similar items on-line:
step in poly posts
highly visible electric tape 656ft roll

What you need: Obviously, buckets, cement, posts, water and string....but other than that:
Scissors, a wheel barrel or sturdy man to carry said cement bags.  Weak men crumble like paper, so if that is all you got, you may as well do it yourself.  Your mothers sturdiest cooking spoon. I own mine, but since I stole it from my mom 15ys ago, I thought i would share the resource.  Plastic butter tub for scooping dry cement. Bout 1 cup size, anything bigger is too big and too hard to handle, anything smaller just makes more work.  Something for your posts to lean against while drying if you made your cement too soupy.  I cannot stress this enough.  Think ahead, because when you have wet cement that you percieve to be drying at lighting speed, panic tends to set in quicker that cement sets up.  Which by the way is 12hours.  Chill, you got time....once your done mixing.  Just don't touch the posts once you have placed them in the cement.  Unless they fall, jiggling them will just make them jiggly after it is set....literally in stone.

How to tie so it makes a loop at the end of string, but won't come undone.

Tips of things to keep in mind:

The cat will not get out of your way, as if they just know that you will go around.

Do Not Park your work station or tools near the cactus.

The cactus will not get out of your way, as if it just knows that you will go around.

Do not let the cat lay near the cactus.

Wear a painters mask.  If you do not, then make sure to keep tissue near by to blow your nose often.

Wear gloves as the lye in the cement will dry your hands quickly and instantly.

Watch out for the cat.

Do not put lotion on, and immediatly work with dry cement.

Leather birkenstocks and cement do not mix.  Wear rubber flip flops so you can rinse your legs often.

Watch out for the cactus.

Cement dust gets everywhere. Do not just dump one bucket of dry cement into another.  Pour it slowly.  Don't worry if you forget this one, the cement will remind you quickly and you will only make that mistake once.  you will then be reminded of the need for tissue!

Rinse your tools and work station in between the making of each bucket, while it may take 24hrs to set up in the bucket, it will quickly harden in small quantites on/in other things.

Do not assume your post will be 'stuck' in the cement and carry it over your foot.  Don't worry, you will only have to do that once to remember it.  Luckily I have not had to deal with that, mine are in, but you never know, so i thought i would mention it.

Always know where the cactus is!

Damn Cat!

You may find it benificial to not put your work station directly underneath a hornets nest.  The theme here is to be aware of your surroundings....and who is occupying it.  As you will want to do this in a well ventilated area.  PS....well ventilated = wind, and it will always be blowing directly towards your face when ever there is a cement dust cloud in front of it!

Beware where you grab things, as dogs think these are great for peeing on!

Don't use too much water, you can always ADD more water, but you cannot ever take it OUT!

Stir quickly!

Do not let your horses investigate during the first 12hs.....cement is permenant and if they knock the post over inside the cement.....It will be stuck that way by morning.

Make sure to bring drinking water with you.  You will likely get very thirsty.

Have a couple extra buckets, and start by filling small buckets first.

When making strings.....measure twice, cut once, measure again!

There is a limit to the number of things you can hold in your hands all at the same time.  You would hate to drop something, reach for it, and instead get a handful of cactus.  Especially when tripping over the cat!

Frozen yogurt does NOT taste as good after a weekend in the freezer.  It has nothing to do with round pen construction.  I just thought it was worth mentioning.

I found it helpful to put a 1/2 inch of water in the bottom of the small buckets, 1 inch of water in the big buckets, then cement, then water as needed while stirring.  As for how much water.....well....that is a learn as you go kinda thing.  i just had a bucket of water to pour from....a hose is not reliable AND the pressure blows dry cement in your face.  By the By.....lots of things will blow dry cement in your face....including a nosey horse snorting in the bucket. Cha'Cote was quite side kick as I worked.

Mistakes and Corrections;

Last but not least.....plan on paper first and double check your math.  I don't know how I did this, but even though I planned this out in detail, many times prior to commencement of supply purchase and construction, somehow I managed to screw up my math.  Originally I planned on 2 buckets and to pop the cement out when set, yet, as described above they didn't pop out.  So when I went to purchase more, I bought 12...thus making 14 posts in all.  Where I can't figure out how I made my other mistake though, is how I just so happened to have 14 stakes.  Hmmmm.  THEN.....Oh yes, there is more.....trust me when I say, when done and set up, I stood there bewildered at my blunder.  So I already told you about my 9ft length of string mishap....this is incredibly stupid......10 feet was wrong too.  Aparently, I had planned to make them 13ft, ie, 3 sections, yes 4 posts only make 3 sections......OR.....I failed to notice that 4 posts only make 3 sections.

THUS......4 posts per side with 10 foot sections will only yield a 30x30 square or 40ft round pen.  DUH....I just couldn't fathom making such a mistake on such simple SIMPLE math.  SO.......The correction to the plan is this.  IF you want a 40x40ft square or 50ft round, you will need 12 post with 13.3 sections.......OR.....you will need 16 posts with 10ft sections.  And what's more, since I had already typed this thing up, and have absolutely NO intention to go back and make THAT many corrections.....YOU.....can change the math on the money for the total cost.  So far, my correction for now, is to use my house as one side of the pen, until I can get to the store to buy 2 more buckets and stakes.  The good news is that I have plenty of cement and string left to correct the mistake.  All in all, it should only cost me another 9 bucks, and another trip to the store to fix it.

PS....yes....the cat and the cactus are conspiring against you.  They even recruited the dog!

PPS.........Ignore the dog in the pic....he is in trouble in the moment for hiking his leg on the couch.....damn dog

Savvy On
Michelle
the math challenged moron.

Happy Mothers Day

Just want to wish all my friends a happy mothers day
enjoy it

Savvy On
Michelle

Osama Bin Laden Is DEAD

That is right, Osama Bin Laden is DEAD!

While it is sad that any human life is lost, some illicit a little less sorrow than others.  May the war on Terrorism be able to be laid to rest.  And may the loss of soldiers fighting for freedom come to an end.  I want to extend my gratitude to the soldiers, of all countries involved in the war, who have paid most dearly, in order to provide me and my family to live in this most wonderful country.

I remember being awake early one morning with my 2yo son, just days before his 3rd birthday, living in a travel trailer waiting for the construction of my new house to be complete.  As trailer trash as one could be, I had my big satellite on the roof of the trailer, so I could still be connected to the world on my little 12 inch screen tv.  I had no idea when I turned on the tv that morning, that the date of that day would forever be the title of a world wide historical event.  Of course that date is 9-11.  The day many US civilians and servicemen/women died at the hands of Osama Bin Laden.  I sat there in disbelief as the events unfolded right before my eyes, and there I sat, in that tiny trailer, crying, grateful it was not me, and saddened for those who could not say the same.

I cannot express in words, through my tears of joy and sorrow, my fear as to what may happen in response to his demise, but am hopeful that maybe this 10yr war may come to an end, and peace and liberty be restored to our mother earth.

May today be known as 5-1

Savvy On Soldiers
May you find Peace in  your hearts
Michelle

How's that saying go?  

"We'll put a boot in your ASS......It's the American Way!"

Great horse commercial

Putting my nose back to the grindstone.......

Well, I haven't posted about my journey for a while.  Things have been crazy here as usual.  Just a short while after my mom got home from the hospital, on the way to the doctors for a follow up, she flipped her car a few times off the highway, landing on the roof of the car.  Amazingly she is ok.  I am beginning to know the hospital staff by name now, and have all dr's listed on speed dial.  Next weekend I will be taking her car shopping....fun.....NOT!  Don't you just love car salesman?

I audited a Mark Rashid clinic and will be writing about that soon.  Just need to make sense of my notes.  I made some new friends there and had a good time. I learned for what ever reason, I am intimidated by men.  Not that I didn't know that already, but it kinda sealed the deal.  I get all tongue tied and stupid, and walk away feeling like a foolish idiot.  C'est la vie!

I also have a few dvd review's to get caught up on.  I kinda got burnt out.  A bit too much stimulation, information, revelations, and little motivation.  I am almost done with Dorrance "greetings" and need to get started on Alexandra Kurlands clicker training and Zettle's 'east meets west' with pat and linda. I am going to be getting the clicker training ones till I have seen all 17 of them, and also Linda Tellington Jones TTeam and TTouch.

I have been dabbling in the clicker training with Cha'cote and the trailer at liberty.  And also with Rose and Spirit using a target. That has been fun.....Interestingly Rose is the slowest to 'get' the target and the clicker.  Spirit was lightning fast, and Cha'cote not far behind him.  Rose was just too busy trying to get her nose in the treat bucket to even notice that any action or sound had any say in the 'when' she got a treat.  Spirit figured it out after about 5 clicks.  Cha'cote about 10 clicks.  I have done clicker in the past with Snookie, so she got it real quick too.

I am also working on a two blog 'pages'.  One is about 'Masters' and the other will ALL about the age old dressage quandary and controversy of....CONTACT.....will be discussing and diagramming the definition, differences and implications of:
"Forward Down and Out"
"Low Deep and Round"
"Poll as the highest Point"
"Behind the vertical"
"On the Bit"

But those are big projects so god only knows how long it will take me.  The contact page is first on my hit list.

I also decided on a picadero as my choice of liberty pen for water hole rituals and liberty play.  A picadero is basically a square 'round' pen. about 35-40' x 35-40.  I got my ideas on how I wanted to 'build' it.  Bought all the 'stuff' and then proceeded to execute my 'plan'.  Let's just say.....I know nothing about cement!  My plan was to use buckets, fill with cement, stick the post in it, let it set, pop it out.....lather rinse repeat 13 more times.  What I learned......don't use so much water.....cement takes about 24hs to set......cement doesn't 'pop' out of buckets.  So now I have two buckets with permanent cement in them, luckily I did put the post in it before it set.  Now I just need 12 more buckets or to line them with plastic bags....but stir the cement in a different bucket first.  That was my intention from the beginning but I used too much water and had to pour half into the other bucket, but already figured out I would not be able to stir it with a bag.....thus, two perm cement buckets.  Ah well, off to the store to more buckets.  And at one or two a day due to set up time, this is going to take me more than a week to have enough of them to make my pen.

Enough for now......
Savvy On
Michelle

DVD review: *** Smokie Brannaman ~ Roundpen

Hooked on Round Pen Work ***
I was pleasantly surprised by this dvd.  Based on his description of using Andersons methods, I guess I was expecting something drastically different than what was on the dvd.  As a parelli student, i would say it is a good and interesting look at maybe a different way of getting a horse to want to be with with you.  And I would have to say that upper level students or anyone who is dealing with rescues, unhandled colts or wild horses, would benifit from watching this.  While it is basically similar to parelli principles, there is some differences in technique.  IE: missing the 'send'..and 'nuetral' (more about these later)...other than that, I don't see anything that contradicts parelli in concept or principle. 

Now here is a really good compliment coming.  In my new journey, for my own education, I have adapted a screening process for deciding if I like a concept, technique, method or trainer. 

First.....How would I feel if I was that horse?  Would I mind being the horse of that human?  For this dvd and for Smokie, I would have to say he gets high marks in this category.  Based on the dvd, I would not have minded being the horse.

Second.....does this concept/technique make sense and is it getting the results they say it is?  Again....for Smokie...YES!

Third.....Would I send my fragile RBI Mustang 'ChaCote' to him to be started?  This is a VERY short list for me.  Seriously....less than 5 people so far have made it on that list.  I have to say......based on what I saw so far....Yes I would.

I liked his philosphies, they align well with being a parelli student, yet there is enough different that makes it worthy of watching.  In other words, we havn't seen it a 1000 times already.

The basic purpose of his technique is to get a horse to "hook on".  Something like Monty Roberts 'join up' meets parelli 'catching game'.  No reason you could not add a 'send' into the techniqe he is using to make things a teeny bit clearer for both horse and human.  He does not do the stand in the middle 'neutral'.  Personally I have deleted that one from my list of 'rules' anyways, and have demoted it to a temporary tool, so two thumbs up there, as long as you find an in motion 'neutral'.  This I find also aligns with WHR "leading from behind".

I liked that he also, takes the time to just BE with the horse before he starts to make ANY requests.  Which also kinda goes along with WHR #1....Sharing Territory.  He gives the horse time to settle into thier surroundings, and also to 'settle' with his presence.  This is something that few trainers or owners do, that I feel could very well be standing in the way of your success if it is lacking.

He also does not seem to promote drilling a horse, or running it raggad, to wear it out, and have the "hook on" be due to fatigue, fear, or dominance.

I have to say that it is evident in watching Smokie with the horses in his presence, that he truley cares about the horse.  But more than just caring, honestly treating them like a friend.  I like that....ALOT....so for people who are not parelli students, and thus have not seen tons of videos already....I give this 4****'s, definately a must see, and is a good educational dvd.  I didn't fall asleep, and I was interested listening to him.  He has the Language, and the Leadership, and most importantly....the LOVE!

Click her for more info
Savvy On
Michelle

DVD Review:*** Tom Dorrance: Feel Timing & Balance

Feel, Timing and Balance ***

Well, I likely will be shot for this review.  But I can only speak my feelings on what I saw, or didn't see.  This dvd is good, but not necessarily the end all be all of Dorrance, I believe.  I do not have his books, nor seen any other video's of him or his work, and I will say that in the beginning of the dvd it clearly states that it is not an educational dvd on what to do, but rather to get the 'essence' of Tom Dorrance.  Which is good, because as an educational dvd, you will not see a whole lot of technique to learn from.  So as a Parelli student, if that is what you are looking for, look elsewhere.  It is not to say there is nothing to be learned from it, because there certainly is.  You DO get the essence of what he stands for.  And there is some good horsemanship to be seen.  Also, as a student, it is good to see the master your teacher learned from.  You can see where your teachers ideas come from, and how the lessons may have been presented to your teacher, and then how your teacher has interpreted/filtered that information and how they are now passing it on to you.  Especially knowing that there are WARS being created in our time, over which of the teachers has interpreted the masters knowledge the 'best'....ie: who is better? Pat, Buck, Dennis...whoever?......etc etc etc.  For years you hear from them all, "I learned this from so and so"  And yet, each of them has such vastly different styles, techniques, concepts, philosophy and values.  So you are left to wonder...."If they all studied from the same person/s, how can they all be so different?"  I certainly have my opinions on that, but this is not really the time or place for that, so maybe later I will share my thoughts on it. 

Because it is so hard to judge sometimes what is useful or educational for one person and not really another, based on where they are at in thier journey.....what I did was to take notes for myself....on what I felt was important for me to remember about what I saw and heard.  As a self assessed L4 Parelli Graduate, these are things that I observed....

On the subject of:

Disk 1

Feel, timing and balance.  Tom explains "The broom" as the best metaphor for explaining it.  If you tried to balance a broom on your thumb, bristles up, and you tried to make the broom stay still....the broom is going to fall. But IF, when the broom goes to the left, then your thumb follows to the left, and when the broom goes to the right, and your thumb follows to the right, you can keep it upright.  The better and quicker your timing and feel, the shorter the distance your thumb will travel, and the better the balance of the broom will be.  The slower your timing, if your too slow, or too big, the broom will fall.  If you can get your feel and timing working really well, your movements may be nearly imperceptible.  But you will always need a little life and a little movement, to stay in harmony with the broom, you need to keep it alive, or it will die and fall.

Same with getting in time with the feet, getting the message to the foot you want to talk to.  If your timing is off, your request will be misunderstood, as you asked when the foot has the least chance of doing what you asked.  Getting your your feel better, so your timing can be quicker, the better balance and life you and your horse will have, and that is the key to true unity.  There is some good examples of this on both discs with a couple of horse evading crossing the tarp.  To see the guy have such good timing with his reins, that the evasion is cut off quickly, and just like a bowling ball down a gutter, the horse had no other options but to cross the tarp.


The Spirit of the horse.  Usually we do not see how hard the horse is trying for us.  Either trying to do what he thinks we want, or trying to communicate something else to us.  Either that he doesn't understand or is in pain or is afraid.  Most times we see it as bad behavior.


There is a good segment on gaining confidence....chose those words as opposed to 'desensitizing' as it was just much softer, and quieter, than i am used to seeing, by way of 'desensitzing'.  Instead of making a bunch of huge movements with the 'flag' (plastic bag on a stick) they just kept it steady, and moved it quietly with the horse until the horse could accept it.

But then there is a segment, with the same horse and a plastic bag, that I dont understand what the lesson was.  The audio was not so great on this disk.  They were creating a bit of unconfidence in the same horse.  Likely I will need to watch it again.  I may never understand it, as it was never stated what the purpose was for doing the technique.  In either case, it is not something I would ever do, regardless of the purpose, so I am not that concerned with it.  The rider was chasing the front end of the horse with the bag while in the saddle.  Personally, I think I know what the lesson was, but honestly feel, if the rider had more knowlege of timing with the feet, or the horse was better prepared on the ground, it would not have been needed.  But alas, I will just never know for sure.

On Learning:  He states he cannot teach anything to anyone.  That he can only help them figure things out.  But that learning has to come from the inside of the human and the inside of the horse.  People are looking for some big thing, but it is almost always some little thing that makes the big difference.

Disk 2

On learning at a clinic
If you think you are going to learn alot, you probably won't.  But if you are coming to get exposure to alot of things and ideas, and then take them home and experiment and explore those ideas, that is where the learning happens.

Working on feel and timing and recognising the horses 'try'
"The horse was afraid to take a chance crossing the tarp because it thought it had been told not to, because the riders timing was off and he was hitting the horse in the mouth with the reins, when the horse would jump across the tarp."

One of the earliest things he tries to get across to a horse is to move his feet when asked.  He tries not to ever let a horse get to a point where the horse will not move his feet when asked.  In regards to a horse who would not cross the tarp online, with handler at the head and two wranglers behind with a but rope.

"Learning how to present ourselves to the horse in a way that is understandable to the horse:
When a person is thinking of it in that way (the above stated), they will be taking care of these things, within themselves, what is needed for the horse, and try to think of the horse first.....But those are just words until they are understood."

Trying to keep the feet going forward and straight: Alright....this is where I can say....."Thank GOD I am a parelli student" Because what Pat teaches to everyday people, about 'nose, neck, maybe feet' truley is a gift from him to us.  Most of us, if not all of us, will not be in this desperate of a position, as the man in this segment.  First let me say, I believe he had only had this horse for a week, and he was a talented skilled rider, and the 'brakes' on this horse were well ingrained.  He would not cross the tarp.  Neither while being ridden or on the ground.  Tom worked with him undersaddle, and no go.  Had the guy get off, and no go.  Had another rider get on, and no go.  Had two guys with a but rope behind the horse and no go.  Finally he had the two guys each put a long,soft, thick cotton rope on each front ankle and led him by the foot, EVENTUALLY over the tarp.  I can say, it was all done with feel, timing and balance....to keep the horse straight.  There were times where I shuddered, watching his legs being pulled to the side, and him fall to his knees.  Tom admits, he would NEVER go such an extreme straight away, and they did try everything they could think of first, even galloping the horse up to it.  Back to being a Parelli student....had this horse been given an honest chance at learning to follow a feel and a suggestion, and being given a little bit of time for nose, neck maybe feet, he just might have not had to have been led by the feet like that.  But what I will say about it, is that I have seen far worse displays of natural horsemanship than this.  And while I would never want to have to resort to such measures, it was less forcefull than what I have seen from many big name guru's.  Though I believe there are other ways, IF the horse is given the time.  Which, often, is exactly the down side of weekend colt starts, Road to the horse type events, and tour stops.  Time is a factor, and often the horses needs are lost in the intrest of making a change for the audience, not the horse, within the time allowed.

Learning to feel the whole horse:
He describes that because we cannot feel of the whole horse, only one or couple parts at a time, we are unable to keep him straight and forward, we cannot have the timing because we do not have the feel, so we will not have the balance.

*** Worth watching, but you won't die without it, as I feel the Parelli system emobies the essence of Tom Dorrance



click for his website

Savvy On
Michelle

Whole Heart: #6 ~ Information

Depriving a horse a desire, so as not to let them win, thus causing us to lose.  "if you do _____ you'll let him wim"....Man, have I heard that a 1000 times over the years.  Mark explains that 'bad' behavior, isn't bad.  It is just the horse trying to comunicate to us his desires or dislikes....it is just information.  How we percieve that information, dictates what we choose do next.  He of course has a few stories of horses to describe the whole...'behavior is just information' thing.  One of which was a horse he bought with some 'problems', and turns out, the behavior disapeared, never to return, the day they dug out 5 large beans from his sheath.  The horse was close to slaughter when Mark found him due to his 'behavior', yet he was in pain, and was just trying to comunicate it to his owners.

This morning I had my own little story of bad behavior = inofrmation.  So we have this puppy, Mondo, who is a chi hua hua/pomeranian mix.  He is 4 mos old.  Since Roxy had parvo on the property last year, we were more than reluctant to let Mondo go outside until he is complete with his shots and more mature in size.  also, there was no one home to let him out during the day.  And it is hard for a small puppy to hold it long times,  so with him being an inside dog anyways, we just put puppy pads on the floor.  He has been really good about using them until a week ago.  "All of a sudden" he started pooping in the living room, about 20ft from the pad.  We got a new brand last week, and thought that might be it? Maybe it smells funny.  We let him in the garage to go out there, he still chose to go about a foot from the pad.  We took his food away, and started to feed him once a day, give him 20 min to eat, and take it away, then take him outside.  again, missed the pad.  So we decided to construct his old puppy pen, and put him in time out, until he 'goes'.  That stinking dog would wait until we let him out, and poop in the living room. He has one more puppy shot to get, and I am paranoid about parvo.....But last night, after watching him in his pen, lonely and pathetic, I decided to let him run around a while.  I lifted the gate, he came out, went 6 inches and hunched.  I said....'oh HELL no" picked him up, and took him out to the garage.  He didn't even look for the pad and started to hunch.....again......'Oh HELL NO!" I picked him up again and took him outside and put him in the shavings that the barn cats poop in.  Do you know that dog sniffed around and went poop! Of course you do, I am the only one stupid enough to not put this together.  So I praised him, and let him run around the house and then put him back in his pen for the night.  When I got up, my husband had already fed him, and there was no new poop in his pen.  So I took him outside, he peed and pooped.  What a GOOD boy!  I let him back in the house.  Right before I left for work, for the first time he hiked his leg on the dust ruffle......a loud scream interupted his pattern before he did the deed, and right then it ocured to me that his testicles are dropping.  And maybe all this 'bad behavior' was just his way of telling me, he is a big boy now, and doesn't need to be treated like a puppy anymore.....and that it is time to get him gelded....I mean neutered!

See, just information.  he wasn't trying to be bad or naughty, or even a filthy pig.  He was just trying to tell us something that he needed us to know.  It is the way we chose to look at the information that assigns a value to it.  I chose to believe, he is just saying.....'hey, dont dogs poop outside?"

Savvy On
Michelle

Whole Heart, Whole Horse by Mark Rashid