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Gia - sessions 1269-1280 would you believe - pony rides!!??

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As is always the case, life is so busy. I will try and catch up here by giving you all some weekly synopses with the highlights. May 25-29, 2026 - What a week this one proved to be! I think I need to just start putting things into the universe via this blog. In the last entry, I mentioned how I hoped that Gia and I could get off to a better start to our work each day. Ironically, or maybe not so much, I personally had a breakthrough in a ride on another horse early in the week. The other horse *name redacted to protect the mostly innocent* was having a bit of a dramatic day. As I was riding through their feelings, I felt noticeably confident and realized I could ride through the silliness and I was able to breathe and work through the ride. It felt like a huge mental breakthrough. Personally, my riding journey has had a lot of (literal and figurative) ups and downs. When I was younger, I felt invincible and had no fear…even through major injuries. As I have gotten older, I’ve struggled...
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Gia - sessions 1262-1268 - lots of challenging days!

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 I got a little behind with Gia’s blog last week so this week will cover two weeks! Monday, May 11- I ended the last blog with a head’s up that there was a new delivery at the farm. A lot of the week will be dedicated to helping her adjust. Heather is in the process of giving the arena a major upgrade: TruTex footing! Currently, she still has a bit of work to do to prepare the arena, so we have 4 very large packages (mattress size) of fiber footing next to the arena. This also means that all the horses have to walk past the packages to go into the barn. Many of the horses were a bit bothered by the giant white bags, but they moved on past it quickly. Gia, however, as expected, needed some more time. I expected Gia would have a hard time with the change, so I had Ashley bring her in and head towards the barn by exiting through the further gate. I was prepared to step in and help out if needed. As expected, Gia stopped in her tracks and planted her feet while snorting once she saw th...
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Gia sessions 1258-1261 - a week of ups and downs

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 Monday May 4-“May the fourth be with you”….Gia was channeling a charming Bantha on Monday. She was very well behaved for her grooming, stretches, and saddling. I debated on just hopping on without lunging, but I decided that I would stick with my routine. I am glad I did because while Gia started lumbering along like a steady Rontos on the lunge line, all of a sudden she started running and bucking on the line as if she was being chased by a herd of Nexu. However, this only lasted a minute and she calmed down right away. I hopped on in hopes she wasn’t going to toss me into a Sarlacc’s den. She was a bit tense at first and needed a few taps with my lightsaber to keep moving but by the end of the ride she was calm and sweet as a Porg. Kudos to anyone who followed along! Tuesday May 5th - It’s Cinco de Mayo and I needed a margarita! I guess Gia just isn’t a fan. I started off the morning with a feeder check-in note that Gia (who has been much improved in her feeding behavior of late...
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Gia - sessions 1254-1257 - slow down!

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This week proved to be another week of excitement and Gia keeping me OFF my toes! Monday 4/27/26- For whatever reason, Gia was having a bit of an “off” day. Ashley was grooming her while I was working with another horse and shortly after she brought her in, she came to report that Gia was not acting as well behaved as she had been in the prior weeks and months. Ashley stated that Gia was very well mannered for her fly sheet and did not even pick up her foot, but when she went to curry comb her, she acted a bit irritated. Ashley worked with her until she relaxed but then came to check in with me. As I’ve stated many times, this process with Gia is a journey to help both Gia and others learn to work together. As we all know, not every day is a good day. I’m so glad Ashley stopped and acknowledged things were amiss before it escalated too far. After I was finished working the other horse, I went into the barn and observed Ashley grooming Gia. I did notice that she was acting agitated and ...
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Gia - sessions 1250 - 1253 expect the unexpected

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Last week, I mentioned that things with Gia were progressing and I had a plan. I also mentioned that things could always change. Well, this week was a bit of both! Basically, it was just another week living and working with Gia. Gia and the scary jump! Tuesday 4/21/26 - We took off Monday this week after a great show held by Castle Farm for their students on Sunday. Almost all of the lesson horses worked hard on Sunday, so we gave everyone the day off on Monday. Heather and I also took the day off (as much as we ever do...). Gia did not participate in the show, but she was an active spectator most of the day. She seemed quite intrigued by all the new jumps and activities. A few times, we even had to halt the classes because Gia came galloping up through the fields. As you can probably imagine, that can be quite the distraction and earth shaking. Gia seemed glad to be back to work on Tuesday morning and was very well behaved for her grooming, stretches, and saddle. However, things took...
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Gia - sessions 1246-1249 - Gia's getting back in the groove!

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This week was an exciting one for Gia. It has been the first week where everything went according to plan in a long time! Monday April 13th-On Monday, Ashley started grooming Gia. She was particularly good. After her grooming, I began working on her stretches. One of Gia's stretches is a belly lift. I must run my finger, or an instrument like a hoof pick or a comb, along the underside of Gia's belly encouraging her to lift her back. At first, she was a bit jumpy and picked up her foot. As soon as I told her to put it down, she obliged and realized what we were doing. These stretches are not new to her, but it has been a while since we have used them. I suspect she will get reaccustomed to them very quickly. After her stretches were complete, I worked on the saddle, for which she was very well behaved. I took her out into the arena next to do her rehab ride of 5 minutes of walk. For whatever reason, she was quite tense and anxious when I got on her. I started off taking her in a...
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Gia sessions 1242-1245 - one small step for Heather, one giant step for Gia!

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 Monday April 6th - On Monday, I had Ashley groom Gia. I made sure not to let Gia know, but I had plans for some changes this week. Gia was very good. Just to clarify: Gia is not perfect. She is an animal with free choice. The goal of the work has been for Gia to get used to others grooming her and educating the grooms on how to read Gia’s body language. Everyone has been doing a great job with their respective roles, and I feel it is time to take a step forward! Tuesday April 7th - On Tuesday, I did not have a groom when it was time for me to work with Gia. I decided to see how far I could get with putting on the saddle if Gia behaved for grooming. Gia was very well behaved, and we got through her grooming very easily. I was curious as to how Gia would act with the saddle as it had been a while. She was very well behaved. Even when I discovered her girth no longer fit and I had to take the saddle off and put it back on with another girth, she stood well for me to make adjustments....
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