Gia - session 83 - Gia tries on a quarter sheet!
Today's weather was pretty soggy and cold. So, in an effort to stay warm and dry, I did most of my rides in a quarter sheet. I decided to try it on Gia and see how she would do with it. It may not seem like a big deal to some, but to a horse, any small change can be a big deal, especially a young horse. A quarter sheet is typically a short, lightweight blanket that covers the horse's hind quarters to keep them warm while they are working. I will usually wrap mine around my waist on cold, rainy days to help keep my legs warmer and dryer as well.
Gia did not seem to be bothered by it at all in the beginning. She was a bit more fidgety at the mounting block, and after I got on. Her extra fidgetiness could have been caused by the sheet, but it's hard to say. She started out super quiet at the walk, once I allowed her to move after she had stood still for three seconds. We warmed up with the figure 8 through the poles, working on haunches left, and she showed no signs of being nervous about the sheet. She was a little more resistant today about the haunches left than she was the last time though.
Once I picked up the trot, she was a little a-rhythmic at first, but quickly found her rhythm and settled into her work. Posting can sometimes cause the sheet to pull on the horse a little, but it didn't seem to bother her. She was quite resistant to pick up her trot today, however, but I don't think it was due to the sheet. She started out so quiet, that she may have just been in a sleepy mood today. She got better about haunches left though, and we also worked on trot-walk-trot transitions, and those were pretty good!
After warming up at the trot, I gave her a small break, and she offered to stretch down on her own! I also asked her for a few walk-halt transitions, and she only pulled down on me one time. For all the other down transitions, she stayed very politely in my hands, including the down transitions at the end of our ride. Huge improvement there!
I decided to ask for canter today. Mainly to see if she would react to the quarter sheet or not. She wasn't feeling terribly forward today, and I think she felt some resistance from the sheet, so her transitions were not as clean as they were last Friday. It took her a few tries to get into it. Once she did, there were a few moments that lacked rhythm, and she may have been thinking about bucking or bolting, but she didn't put too much effort into either (thankfully!). I didn't push her too much about the canter. It wasn't a big deal today, and I don't want the canter to become something she dreads because I've made too big a deal about it on a day when she is lethargic, and on a day where she is wearing new equipment. We'll save that argument for another day, and we might not even have to argue about it at all.
We finished with a few lovely down transitions to the halt and called it a day. Not one of our best rides, but still fairly productive.
Once I picked up the trot, she was a little a-rhythmic at first, but quickly found her rhythm and settled into her work. Posting can sometimes cause the sheet to pull on the horse a little, but it didn't seem to bother her. She was quite resistant to pick up her trot today, however, but I don't think it was due to the sheet. She started out so quiet, that she may have just been in a sleepy mood today. She got better about haunches left though, and we also worked on trot-walk-trot transitions, and those were pretty good!
After warming up at the trot, I gave her a small break, and she offered to stretch down on her own! I also asked her for a few walk-halt transitions, and she only pulled down on me one time. For all the other down transitions, she stayed very politely in my hands, including the down transitions at the end of our ride. Huge improvement there!
I decided to ask for canter today. Mainly to see if she would react to the quarter sheet or not. She wasn't feeling terribly forward today, and I think she felt some resistance from the sheet, so her transitions were not as clean as they were last Friday. It took her a few tries to get into it. Once she did, there were a few moments that lacked rhythm, and she may have been thinking about bucking or bolting, but she didn't put too much effort into either (thankfully!). I didn't push her too much about the canter. It wasn't a big deal today, and I don't want the canter to become something she dreads because I've made too big a deal about it on a day when she is lethargic, and on a day where she is wearing new equipment. We'll save that argument for another day, and we might not even have to argue about it at all.
We finished with a few lovely down transitions to the halt and called it a day. Not one of our best rides, but still fairly productive.
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