Gia - session 6 - bridling!

Things with Gia started pretty much the same way they have the last several sessions.  We touched the tarp and the scary plastic bag, and they were non-issues today.  She was almost annoyed that I wouldn't let her have grass until she touched them, but she wasn't scared at all.  I groomed and saddled her with very little fidgeting.  Then I added the bridle today.  She has grown a lot since last fall, so I had to let it down a hole.  But she gave me no trouble putting it over her head and putting the bit in her mouth.  She is actually pretty willing to open her mouth for the bit, and she keeps her mouth pretty quiet as well.  Most young horses (and plenty of older ones) have a lot of fussiness with their bits.  One thing I like to do with young horses when bridling for a while, is to separate the noseband from the main headstall and put them on separately.  I put the noseband on first, and fasten it on the first hole, so that I have something to hold onto when trying to put the rest of the bridle on.  After a while, when bridling is a complete non-issue, I will put the bridle back together and put it all on at once.  Anyway, once she was all tacked up, we worked out on the circle.  She was very calm and relaxed today.  Once or twice she gave me a slight hint that she might be a little rude, but I pushed her to work harder, and she really didn't try anything nasty after that.  It did not take her long to remember what she had to do to get me to stop pushing her to work.  Once she dropped her head and licked and chewed, she was promptly rewarded with a nice long break and lots of rubbing.  Her entire session today was really laid back - exactly how I would like them all to go!