Gia - session 3 - more round pen work, and saddling

I worked with Gia today again in the round pen, repeating what she has done the last two times.  Just like on Tuesday, she was quick to be submissive and respectful.  As a reward, she received another good long grooming session.  Then it was time to add something new - the saddle.  It wasn't completely new, since she did wear the saddle a lot last year, but it's been about 6 months, so she definitely needed a refresher.  I did not really need to desensitize her to the process of putting it on, like I'm sure I had to do last year.  She did move around a little bit while I put the saddle pad and then the saddle on, but not too bad.  She did not move at all while I tightened the girth.  Once I had the saddle on and the girth tight, I asked her to move around the round pen.  It's one thing to be quiet when the saddle is on and the horse isn't moving, but when they start moving, they feel all sorts of things going on with the saddle on their back, and that will often get some reactions.  She did react a little.  She put her head down several times and tried several "gentle" bucks.  Each time she did, I would give her a "buzz" sound, and walk straight at her head to stop her and get her to turn around.  I wanted her to see that this behavior was unacceptable.  It took a little while before she decided it wasn't really worth the effort to keep trying to get rid of the saddle.  When she made that decision, she was able to let go of some tension, and again give me the signs of submission and respect.  I don't remember how she behaved last year when I first saddled her, but I don't remember much drama then either.  Once she relaxed and submitted, I allowed her to have a break while I rubbed and loved on her a little.  I sent her back out to work through the tension a couple more times (I like to do things in groups of threes), but both times she submitted almost immediately.  My plan will be to go through this a few more times, until she does not have any tension about carrying the saddle, and has no hesitation to submit and relax. 

Gia, after she has decided that the saddle is not too bad


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Gia - session 955 - lesson at CDP

 I had a lesson with Hayley today at CDP.  Gia felt great today!  We started with a nice, crisp walk, and then moved right into a forward trot.  We worked all over the ring with changes of direction and in a good, steady tempo, we also worked on lengthening and collecting the trot.  Gia was nicely obedient to everything I asked her to do.  When I first asked for the canter, I forgot to keep my arms soft, so it didn't last more than a few steps.  But the second time, I remembered, and stayed a little off her back as well.  It started awkward, and counterbent, but as I stayed soft and following with my seat and arms, she eventually figured out what to do with her body, and started to come nicely around my inside leg.  We did the same thing in the other direction (which is usually her bad direction), but it went really well!  We decided to quite while we were ahead after that!  Hopefully, this ride will carry into this weekend for the show! 
Read more

Gia - session 956 and 957 - War Horse schooling and show

 I took Gia to the War Horse schooling and show this weekend at the Carolina Horse Park.  When I got on Saturday morning, she started out quite tense - wanting to go up in the front, and up in the back as well, but not really wanting to go forward.  I finally did get her forward, eventually, and slowly, and we made it to the stadium warm up.  After warming up with some trot, and over a few jumps, we schooled the stadium course.  She was a bit nervous, but did OK otherwise.  So, on to cross country schooling.  She felt fairly the same on cross country - a little nervous, but at least by that time, she was moving forward.  She was a bit nervous about a couple of the jumps, and some of the soggy ground.  We "discussed" it, and then she was able to get over/through it.  She felt a lot more confident by the end. On Sunday, she felt fine when I got on for dressage.  I warmed her up in the grass, near the barns, first, where she could stay calmer.  She was fairly responsive and rela
Read more

Gia - session 947 - lesson at CDP

 I took Gia to CDP for a lesson today.  She was very good with her shipping boots this morning - no drama at all!.  She was also pretty good for getting on the trailer, with me on the off side.  She did get her head a little stuck on the wrong side of the divider, but I quickly got it unstuck, and she was good to go. I warmed Gia up deep and low at the walk and trot with lots of changes of bend and direction, all over the ring.  She was a bit spooky and resistant, but we worked through it, and she started to settle down, relax, and stretch her neck out a little.  I added canter transitions, and those went fairly well.   Susan worked with us today.  She had me focus on Gia's rhythm and the timing of her footfalls at all gaits.  She also had me focus on my straightness in the saddle and my alignment with Gia, as well as Gia's straightness on the circle, and through changes of direction.  We worked through transitions between the gaits, and they gradually improved, and I felt Gia
Read more