Gia - sessions 1143-1146, more long lining and lunging

 This week was more of me healing my tailbone and not riding, and more lunging and long lining for Gia.  

Monday 9/15:  I lunged her in the field, starting with a light warm up at the trot.  Whenever I asked her to go forward, she was not allowed to pull on the line.  If she did, she had to stop or slow down until she wasn't pulling anymore, and then go again.  We did lots of transitions like that until she could go forward nicely in each direction without pulling or leaning.  Then she had to do the same thing over jumps, and she had to go forward when she landed from the jump.  She wasn't allowed to land and quit, or land and drag her toes.  Once she would go forward without pulling, she was able to jump much more freely too!

Tuesday 9/16: I started Gia on the long lines in the arena at a fairly loose trot to get her warmed up and get her muscles moving and blood flowing.  Then I brought her back to the halt, and worked with her in hand, in the bridle, on lifting her poll and then flexing left and right.  Once she did that fairly well, I asked for the same things, but through the lines at her side.  That was quite a bit harder for her.  Whenever she would get a good moment, I would let the reins drop to give her a complete and total break.  I did have to keep her forward at times with a small dressage whip in one hand.  

Wednesday 9/17:  We went back to the lunge line out in the field again.  I played with Gia a few times at the "mattress" jump.  She's not a big fan, but we keep working on "building her window of tolerance" about it, and eventually, she will regard it as no big deal.  On this day, we walked up to it, got close enough for her to touch it, but not dare put a foot on it, found our way to relaxation, then went away and played on another jump elsewhere until we came back to it again later.  We never made a lot of progress with it, but I think she makes progress in her mind.  Meanwhile, we worked on the same stuff we did on Monday.

Friday 9/19:  Back to the long lines in the arena.  Apparently, Gia was starting to understand the work we had been doing on the long lines, and in hand, for the last few weeks.  After I warmed her up with a loose trot, as I started to collect her, she started to soften to my inside hand and move into my outside hand, and keep her poll up, and keep her poll/ears level, and her neck stretched out fairly well, and her tempo and stride moving forward, and we actually had a really nice working trot on a circle!  We were able to maintain it, and change directions, and make transitions to walk and back to trot, and even to canter, and then even stretch it down a little (although that was a bit harder).  It's funny how it all just starts to click all of a sudden, and when you don't even expect it!  It's pretty awesome, actually!

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