One Friesian Sporthorse, One Donkey & One Percheron

Chrome Learns Manners

2012-02-01T10:17:00.004-06:00

I remembered watching a video somewhere on YouTube about Carolyn Resnick working with a stallion on respect and manners around food. I've always admired Carolyn Resnick's ways, but I've never used her methods before because I can't afford to pay for her books/DVDs. I finally found her blog here (http://www.carolynresnickblog.com/) that has a lot of really good information on it.

So anyway, I don't remember where the video is, but if you search YouTube you can probably find it. On Monday I decided to try it with Chrome since he can be a bit of a brat about food. I've also been making him back up before he can eat his breakfast and dinner. Once I have the barn fixed and a stall I'm going to teach him to put his ears forward before he can eat. It's just hard to do it right now because the other two interfere.

First we played Chase the Tiger because it had been a while and I figured we've been working on hard stuff (backing with head down; will get video later) and he deserved some play time.

Then I locked the other two out of the round pen, sat a bucket of feed down and got to work. I popped him a little hard the first time with the whip by accident, but I'm telling you he has no fear or respect for whips lol. I'll work with him on that (using another Resnick method and yes I'll get video) so I don't have to hit him next time.

I was proud of him! He still sometimes tried to go for it, but a vocal "eh eh" was enough to keep him from eating the feed. With a little more practice I doubt he'll even look at it. :D There are a couple more things regarding feed that I'm going to try because I've finally learned that what we're lacking in our relationship is respect (I know duh right). He knows I can't move him if he doesn't want to (hence having to smack him so hard) and he thinks that he can have whatever he wants, so he's about to learn that I own his resources and I give them to him because I'm a kind leader. Someday we can go back to being best friends, but right now he has to learn that I'm the one in control and he can't keep trying to boss me around. So things are about to start getting interesting around here so keep coming back. :D I know I sound disorganized right now, but I promise I have a whole training plan figured out. Things are going to be a million times better before May using these methods. And don't worry, not a single one of them ever involves even touching him. I'm not going to beat him into submission because I just don't believe in that and it's not the way I train. Trust me I'll be explaining things better soon.

P.S. After going back over this I realized I'm making Chrome sound like a bully, but he totally isn't!! The things he does are very mild and subtle. Things like pinned ears (keep in mind he does pin them during play and that's not being aggressive or anything, just playing) or not moving very fast when I ask him to or stepping into my path. He's not ugly, but the subtle signs he shows are that he thinks he controls the show. So we're going to work on that.

New Blankets (question) & Mounting Practice

2012-01-31T05:00:00.000-06:00

Faran's adorable snip.

We stopped in town today to pick up a couple of thin saddle blankets for the boys. I don't like to share pads and blankets in case of rain rot or some other contagious skin disease. It's just healthier that way. So we got their own blankets for wearing under anything they might share (or just by itself). The blankets were too long though (but too small folded in half), so we may have to do some creative sewing (that would be removable if needed). I also tried something interesting with Chrome's.

I LOVE the color. We have to match hehe.

What I did was put the surcingle over the blanket and then folded it back over. I'm thinking it could be a good way to secure the blanket for bareback riding. The blanket would protect my legs from being rubbed by the surcingle (I won't be sitting on it obviously, but my legs my overlap it a bit) and further down is protected by half chaps. So do you see any reason this wouldn't work? It would just be for keeping sweat off my breeches. Regardless of if it works or not he is cute! One more picture.

I put two more holes in his halter and tightened if up some more. Look better? The throat piece is still a little loose, but there is no way to adjust it so he will just have to grow into it. :)

Also, quick funny story before we move on to Faran. Our neighbor stopped to say hi so my husband was showing him the new Aussie saddle while I played with Chrome. I was letting him see the blanket for the first time and we were having fun with it. He threw it in the dirt lol and I put it over his head. Then I led him blindly (well he could see a little in front of him, enough to tell when I stopped) over to our neighbor. He was hesitant at first, but he trusted me. :D Good boy!

Now Faran.

See how large the blanket is when place correctly?? Chrome's dwarfs him. I think if we sew up the sides a little just to shorten it enough so that it's not in the girth that it will be okay. :)

Gorgeous!!

My husband main intent with putting the saddle on was to see if the breastcollar that came with the dressage saddle that was given to me would fit Faran and it does! Yay! It looks handsome on him too. Then we were standing there talking and I suggested he try putting his foot in the stirrup like I did the other day (click here to see the first time I put a foot in the stirrup http://rdxhorses.blogspot.com/2012/01/faran-wears-our-new-aussie-saddle-video.html). Unfortunately I didn't get video this time. Too bad because his reaction was explosive lol.

The first time my husband put his foot in the stirrup Faran was fine until he reached up to grab the horn and then he literally flew sideways about three feet (without ever hitting his rope good boy!). Upon finding his trigger (reaching for the horn) we got out the clicker and went to work on it. He was very nervous (in fact he spooked at the first click lol), but he quickly settled down. We watched specifically for relaxing signs (ears, snorts, licking, etc) to click and in no time he was even offering lowering his head (his current default behavior lol) when my husband put his foot in the stirrup. Win!

A couple more pictures of my cute boys. :)

And a couple more of my cutie colt.

Yes I was leaning on his haunches lol.

Loving my boys (all three of them)!! :D I hope everyone had a fantastic January!

P.S. Oh and I almost forgot. My husband worked on Faran with his hooves too and he did fantastic on all but his right hind. He was very resistant with that one for some reason. My husband gently persisted though and Faran finally gave up. They are both getting a bit thrushy from all of the wet weather, so Faran is about to get a lesson in spray bottles on the feet hehe.

Our play time on Saturday . . . cute video!

2012-01-30T05:00:00.001-06:00

We found some old stuff so we brought the horses up on Saturday to try some of it out. They were so muddy!! First they had to check out the stuff (see the old pulling collar?). Captions are all above the pictures (I think).

Notice Faran's gorgeous, thick tail . . . and the MUD!

Now I understand why some people don't like black horses . . .

Chrome got to try the collar on first, while Faran waited (and dumped my husband's groom box).

Here's Chrome's video.

Did you like my mocking reference to War Horse? LOL Then it was Faran's turn to try the collar and Chrome had to wait (not too happily lol). Check out his muscles. Is it the way he's standing or is he a lot more muscled on his left then right?

Here's Faran's video. Notice how he leans away from it at first? He's so leery and skeptical of everything, but he's getting soooo much better!

And a picture. It was so cute how he just relaxed into it when he realized what it was.

I also found my old breastcollar I used to use on my Appaloosa mare. The little white spots are where I had sewn bells onto it. They were crushed so I cut them off and I have new bells to put on it later (need to get a strong needle).

I put on his cavesson and driving reins, but left the halter and lead on too for my husband to hold, so we could try ground driving down the road. He was doing really well (sorry no video) and we were practicing having him move to the opposite side of the road from my husband and Faran, without trying to turn around (the reason my husband had the lead rope and also for safety on a public road). Then we saw our lease land owners and stopped to chat. Dark caught up to us so we walked home. We will make it further next time. :)

I have another fun post tomorrow about what we did on Sunday. :D

Adorable Chrome Pictures

2012-01-29T09:40:00.003-06:00

I was digging through the attic and found Chrome's old foal blanket from two years ago. Remember it? Here's a picture of his first day trying it on.

It was way too big for him. Now check it out almost two years later!

Isn't he so cute?? This picture is also a perfect example of how much he crowds me. I was letting him lick my hand as a distraction while my husband took the picture, but as soon as he was done with the picture I made Chrome back up. He stepped back two steps, gave a huge sigh and just stood there. It was so cute. I wish he'd gotten a video of it lol. Now that I'm insisting that he backs up he's getting a lot better. I still need to be better about it though and not let him get so close.

P.S. I am going to punch a hole or two in his halter so that it will fit better, I just haven't had time! We weren't going for a walk so he was fine in it. I think if it fit better he would listen to it a lot better too. :)

Liebster Blog Award

2012-01-28T19:04:00.003-06:00

I got the Liebster Blog Award from Margaret at Just Horses and DS at Adventures in Colt (filly) Starting. Thank you guys!!

Liebster means “dearest” in German, and the award is intended to help up-and-coming blogs get the attention they deserve. Here are the rules:

1. Copy and paste the award on our blog.
2. Link back to the blogger who gave us the award
3. Pick our five favorite blogs with less than 200 followers, and leave a comment on their blog to let them know they have received the award.
4. Hope that the five blogs chosen will keep spreading the love and pass it on to five more blogs

I'm going to choose blogs about clicker training that I've been following a while, since last time I received the award on my other blog Living a Farmer's Life I chose new ones I was following, so here they are:

1. Heroes and Dragons - She has adorable Fell ponies (and lots of other cool animals) she rescued, does classical dressage and clicker training! What more can you ask for?

2. Painting Pony - I don't know how many followers she actually has, but wanted to mention her blog. She has awesome Chincoteague ponies and she also does a lot for the breed. Her ponies are known for their talent painting and she does it all with clicker training!

3. My Friend Grayson - I love her horse Grayson. He's just awesome. They do a lot of clicker training too and have such a great relationship. :)

4. Nuzzling Muzzles - An always entertaining blog. She has three gorgeous Arabians. I've been following her blog a while, but she's pretty new to clicker training. I'm always excited to read about her progress with it, but I understand she's really busy right now and it's difficult dealing with the evil neighbors. Looking forward to her move where she can have a private property to enjoy her horses again.

5. Hoofprints of Enzo and Kaspin - She doesn't do clicker training, but I wanted to mention her because she has the most awesome Friesian colt ever who is around Chrome's age so it's been a lot of fun following her progress. She just got an adorable Haflinger too!

Thank you guys for the award!!

Chrome wears our new Aussie saddle! Video!

2012-01-24T05:00:00.000-06:00

Oops I forgot to get still shots, so I grabbed a couple from the video.

Isn't he handsome? I think he looks great in it. And even if he doesn't get any taller (I know he will because he's only two and a half) I'll be totally fine with that because the stirrup sits right at his underline. :) That's a huge improvement over the ponies I rode as a kid with my toes hanging to their knees lol! I know this is totally a copycat post, but you knew I couldn't leave Chrome out hehe. Also there is something really exciting in the video!! Check it out.

Note: If the saddling is boring you can skip ahead to 5:00 to see the exciting part. :)

Yep, first time ever putting weight in a stirrup. Previously he's always been bareback and I just laid across his back. He has his ears back probably because it's uncomfortable having me mount from the ground (I know, I know, I should use a mounting block, but I don't have one; we're actually building one today!). I think he was awesome and I'm so proud of him. If you can't watch the video here is a picture. :)

I think he's going to be so easy to start. I've had Chrome since he was five months old and I spent a lot of time hugging his head, neck and barrel so I don't think he's at all claustrophobic. :) I can't wait for May!!

Faran wears our new Aussie saddle! Video!

2012-01-23T21:46:00.002-06:00

I told you I had something exciting to share. :D Okay, so maybe saddling a horse isn't the most exciting thing in the world, but when you have a horse like Faran who has been abused it is a big deal. He did so great too! Look how handsome he is wearing our new saddle.

He makes it look small hehe. He was nervous at first, but as soon as we got the first pad on him (used two to keep my nice one clean) he relaxed and seemed unconcerned by the whole process.

It appears to fit him really well (I should hope with custom sizing lol)! It sits a bit high in the front, but they said once there was weight in it the panels would compress a bit. I'm so happy to have such a nice saddle that fits for such a good deal. :)

Here's the video. If you get bored of the saddling part you can skip ahead to 5:37 to see the interesting part.

I think he did so well! He was nervous when I put my foot in the stirrup because I bumped him with my toe and he's soooo sensitive, but he calmed down and I kept my foot in the stirrup until he stood still. The second time he was perfect. Note for anyone who can't watch the video I did not get on, I just put my toe in the stirrup and put some weight in it to see how he would react.

We're proud of Faran. He's relaxed a lot and has been doing so well! I'm looking forward to a fun and productive year with him.

Chrome's Hooves

2012-01-22T20:40:00.007-06:00

Okay, I said I was posting something exciting today, but I wasn't able to get it ready in time, so I'm posting about Chrome's hooves instead. I don't work tomorrow so I'll get it done then.

Anyway the reason I'm posting about Chrome's hooves is because my new farrier has definitely made some great improvements, but it feels like progress has stalled out. I've learned a lot about hooves, but I have a LOT more to learn, so I'm asking the barefoot trimming experts(or if you know one who wouldn't mind looking at my pictures) out there to chime in please. I would appreciate an explanation on what I'm seeing and advice on where we should go from here.

Chrome still has clubby rear hooves (all his heels look high to me) and really short toes. He has a lot of concavity and his frogs look like they need to shed (been muddy here). He is getting close to due for a trimming, so this is toward the end of his eight weeks between (going to ask her about more frequent trims because I think that's too long for him). He does toe out (but doesn't interfere) and it looks like he stands with more weight on the insides of his hooves. If you look at the last picture it's weird! I never noticed that before. Anyway here are his pictures. Sorry some of them are blurry and the camera is tilted on some. Hope they still show what they need to.

Left Fore

Left Hind

Right Hind

Right Fore

Picture from the side.

Rear view.

Hmm, the reason it looks like more weight is on the inside is because he toes in . . . I didn't realize it was that bad. Sheesh.

So any thoughts/advice??

Chrome's Monthly Progress Report

2012-01-21T18:43:00.003-06:00

Date: 1-19-11 (posting two days late oops)
Age: 2 Years & 8 Months (32 Months)
Height: 15.1hh
Height Gain: Nope, still not growing in the front, but his wither are becoming more defined and look at his haunches! He's apparently growing back there right now because he is so butt high lol.
Weight: His heart girth measurement is 69 and his length measurement is 72, so according to the Equine Weight Calculator he weighs 1039lbs. I think the calculator is so much more accurate than a weight tape. :)
Weight Gain: He gained twenty nine pounds. And he doesn't look fat yay!

Progress: I took Chrome on some walks, even down the highway! Other than that I haven't done much. I've done some refining of the cues he already knows and discovered that he knows how to put his head down on a voice cue alone! Exciting. :D

Goals: If it continues to be this mild outside I would really love to try some ground driving with him again. If not then just continue with walks, grooming, just messing around.

So here are our comparison shots.

1-19-2010

I can't believe this muddy picture is the only one I took of him!! Or that I'm posting it again lol.

1-19-2011

Crappy picture lol. Should have waited until morning!

1-19-2012

Check back tomorrow for an exciting post!

The Surprise

2012-01-19T19:49:00.004-06:00

Okay so my husband is too excited and wants me to post this tonight even though I've already posted today. So here's the surprise . . .

Can you tell what it is yet?

Does this help?

Yep, my husband got a saddle!

None of the Western saddles we own fit either of us because they were our saddles from when we were kids. This one fits both of us, but it will be his because it's custom made to fit Faran's back (sent in multiple measurements and wither tracings). It's synthetic so it's not heavy at all, which is a necessity with his back injury. I've never had an overwhelming desire to own an Aussie saddle, but he loves them so that's what he got. :) I might use it some too until I can get my own saddle. I don't want to buy one for Chrome until he's done growing so it will be a few years. If we really like the quality of this one I might go with a dressage version of the Aussie. Don't know yet for sure. I may still go treeless. And this one was on sale because one poly is bent a tiny bit. Not enough to bother us though. :D Here are more pictures.

Suede seat is comfortable. Oh and another thing I liked when I sat in it (not on a horse obviously since Chrome hasn't been started and Faran isn't ready) is that it's SO easy to get a dressage seat with the correct leg position. On a depressing note I seriously need to start stretching!! My hamstrings and calves are so tight I couldn't even get my heel level. Ahh!! They are supposed to be really comfortable for long trail rides too. Can't wait to find out!

Doesn't he look excited? :D

Also the girth attaches with billet straps like on a dressage saddle (billets are longer than a dressage saddle though) and the stirrups attach the same way too, so if we don't like the nylons we can switch out for leathers.

And here is a cute little carrying pouch thing they sent as a freebie for carrying cell phone, I.D., etc. on trail rides.

Below is the girth, which should be long enough for Faran since the billets are so long.

A DVD that came with it (which we're watching right now lol).

So what do you think? I think he's happy with it. He's excited about trying it out too lol. :)

The Most Handsome Percheron Gelding on the Planet!

2012-01-19T18:45:00.003-06:00

I ran out of time and daylight to get Chrome's pictures and measurements for his Monthly Progress Report so instead I'll share some pictures of Faran. I'll get Chrome's report up soon and I also have a surprise to share in a couple of days. :D Enjoy the pictures!

And for my donkey fans, a picture of Zep.

Chrome Training Video (and a cute one too!)

2012-01-17T20:05:00.004-06:00

Notice that he's finally growing withers hehe.

I was going to take Chrome for another two mile walk, but he was being so responsive and awesome I decided to work on some of the other stuff he knows that we haven't necessarily worked on while out on the road much. We worked on walking, trotting, halting, backing, lowering his head (for voice cue only yay!!), yielding shoulders, etc. We had one bad moment which you will have to just see in the video, but after watching it I honestly don't think he really did it on purpose. I scolded him and made him get out of my space and then we continued on with our work as if nothing had happened. I also apologize for my horrid fashion sense lol. Today was my cleaning day and all of my jeans were in the wash so I'm wearing some awful capris (with tall socks ahh!). Oh and I'm wearing Mechanix gloves because I couldn't find my riding gloves hehe. :)

Oh and I completely forgot to mention I finally got a whip. It isn't a dressage whip because they didn't have any. It's a bit longer than a dressage whip and the best part is it's blue! The same blue as his awesome halter. :D Here is a video of Chrome's opinion of the whip . . .

Isn't he just adorable?? Now here is the video of our training session. I shortened it as much as possible so it wouldn't bore you. I think I have it broken up into short enough sections to keep everyone's interest. Let me know what you think!

I was happy with how he did. Obviously I wasn't pleased that he almost stepped on me (he didn't hurt me at all thank goodness!) but it does show me that I'm just too relaxed about him being in my space. I need to be more alert to where he is in relation to my body and keep him off of me so these things won't happen any more (or worse). Over all though I think it went well. The sad part is the best part wasn't caught on video. I was walking down the road with every intent of doing the full two miles but he was being so awesome I turned around and asked my husband to grab the video camera, so you're not even seeing his best work. He was getting bored by this point. :) The part I was most excited about was that he was doing "head down" with a voice cue only!! Normally I have to at least point at his neck to get him to drop it, but this time he was doing on voice cue. I am so excited, because I wasn't sure if he actually listens to voice cues. Apparently he listens more than I give him credit for. Anyway sorry for rambling. I look forward to reading your comments!

I LOVE Chrome!!! a.k.a. He redeemed himself!

2012-01-15T19:45:00.005-06:00

Okay Chrome totally redeemed himself!! I learned from my mistakes and was a lot better prepared. I put him in the rope halter, but didn't have a whip because my feed store was closed (duh Sunday) and TSC (Tractor Supply) didn't have any of the kind I wanted. Oh well. I'll get one tomorrow. The picture above shows that he is capable of actually stepping under himself lol. He was eager to go, but not over-excited this time.

My friend was able to go too, so I got much better pictures this time. :D Hubby was out of town helping my dad put shingles on his roof so that's why he wasn't there to help either day. So anyway, back to the point, Chrome did awesome! He was still excited when we passed the horses and he did spook once when something next to us in the woods made a big noise (deer?). He teleported two feet sideways, but that was all. He was instantly calm again. :) We ran into another friend with her kids in the car so he said hi to them too. Chrome has gotten to where he loves visiting with people in cars because there are always kids to see lol.

Chrome listened so much better and only tried to snatch grass a couple of times. As soon as he realized he couldn't he gave up. :) On the way back by the store my friend's uncle pulled in so we actually went into the parking lot since his truck blocked anyone else from running over me and Chrome. We visited for a little bit and Chrome was great. It was too funny because I didn't even realize his front feet were next to me and his rear feet were up on the sidewalk the whole time LOL. Sorry boy. :)

On the way back home we stopped at the neighbor's house so my friend could meet their adorable five month old colt. Chrome enjoyed meeting the other horses, but he gets so excited because he hasn't really been around other horses much (just mine). So I just moved him away from them and he stood quietly (and played with the cat). Anyway sorry for writing so much. Here are the pictures.

I asked him to lower his head once and then he started offering it on his own. He's getting a lot better about holding it too. He can do ten steps with only one bob back up and back down. :)

When I give him his treat I'm making him back at least three steps before he can have it. He's figuring it out so quickly!

When we passed the church again he finally spotted his reflection in the glass door! It was so cute! We had just walked passed the neighbor's horses so he was excited and when he saw himself he puffed up and was staring. Too cute.

Walking along he gets a nice long stride. :)
He has a pretty impressive, forward walk at times.
Does he look thin to you?

Gorgeous boy got to carry my jacket again. I love short sleeves in January. :D

I love his expression in this picture. :)

I love how when I ask him to smile if I don't immediately give him a treat he keeps creeping forward and smiling until he's all stretched out. So adorable. :D

Sorry about the weird angle. I wanted to include the awesome clouds. I love how he's resting his toe in this one. He's so cute.

A real pose. Too bad for the jacket, this is a really cute picture.

A couple of sky shots to show how absolutely gorgeous our evening walk was. I love this kind of weather.

And then we stopped at the neighbor's house.

And Chrome met his first horse friendly cat (our cat runs from him). LOVE his neck!!

Blurry, but I so love this shot. That cat was rubbing all over him and Chrome was wiggling his lip like he was grooming another horse. They were just too adorable together. At one point Chrome nudged the cat and the offended kitty stepped back and looked at him like he was so rude LOL!

Well, that's all! I'm so happy he did so much better today. It makes me feel a lot better about how icky yesterday was. Yesterday was just one of those days that happens and we just have to move on. Well we totally did. :) I love my colt!

Crossing The Highway - Also Need Advice!

2012-01-14T18:52:00.006-06:00

I had a stressful day at work, so I decided I would not waste the rest of the beautiful (only slightly chilly) sunny day. I decided to take Chrome for a walk. I decided to take him in his pretty new blue Christmas halter. I also decided to take him across the highway for his second time ever (because we have to go that way to get to a neighbor's house where he will be having his teeth floated when we can get it rescheduled, so might as well practice).

It almost looks like his front legs are crossed because of the shadow lol!

I completely did not take into account the fact that Chrome has not been for a walk in over a month and that we haven't practiced in the new halter, so he was very dull to it (used to his rope halter) as well as being very up since we went a new way he's never been before. He really was not horrible, just very distracted. On a good note though he did not step on me or run in to me (and he's never tried to drag me), not even when he spooked once when a huge truck drove up behind us (then proceeded to ignore the other four we saw; it was one of those huge round silver eighteen wheeler trucks).

I got some video, but I don't have time to edit it right now, so I'll share it later. So anyway when we got to the end of our road our neighbors were driving by and stopped for a chat and so that their kids could say hi to Chrome. When we got done talking we went to cross the highway. It was a lot busier than I thought it was going to be, but we waited for a big break in traffic and crossed.

On the other side we walked the ditch, which was very wide and gradually climbs uphill with a four foot drop back down to the road. I thought that it eventually ran into a side road, but there was a line of trees and thickets that went all the way to the ditch, so we had to climb down the ditch back to the road to go around. Chrome did really well and made his way slowly down into the ditch. We hurried to the side road, went around the corner store to the road behind it. I didn't want to cross the parking lot because people fly into there to park. We went behind the store and back into the ditch across the road from the local elementary school.

There were a bunch of kids screaming, running and jumping on the playground across the street at the school. Chrome totally ignored them. We crossed another road into a large grassy area that was part of a cow pasture, but they cut the corner with the fencing instead of going to the road for some reason. I got him away from the road and let him graze as a reward for being calm. Here are some pictures of him grazing. I was trying to be artistic lol.

I'll have to go back down there, but I'm pretty sure the ground wasn't sloped . . . is he really that butt high??

Doesn't his blue halter looks great with the blue sky? :)

That's the school behind him, across the street. :)

So anyway, next we have the bad news. I told him it was time to go and he completely ignored me. Brat! I tried pulling his head up, but he ignored it. So I reached down to grab his halter right as he finally decided to go with me and popped his head up . . . directly into my face!!! Luckily it was the soft part of his nose into my lower jaw and lip. I bit my lip bad enough to fill my mouth with blood. I'm fine though. Wasn't as bad as it felt at the time. I know it was totally an accident, so I'm not mad at him. It was simply us moving into the same space at the same time.

So what is the best method for making a horse lighter to pressure off of a flat nylon halter? I've been using a rope halter with him for so long (because it's adjustable and I didn't want to buy a bunch of halters that he would outgrow) that he thinks he can just ignore the blue one. Sigh. Any hints? Anyway here are some more pictures, but keep reading because I'll tell you below what we worked on when we got back home.

He did a lot better going home. I think the grazing really helped him calm down.

Instead of climbing the four foot ditch again we crossed the road early and cut across the church parking lot. I love the above picture and the one below because another one of those huge trucks went by and he went into big time FFA (Full Friesian Alert). Too cute!

So cute!!

I still love that halter!!

Silly boy decided the church flowers tasted good LOL!

Also when I have time we had some fun in a puddle in the church parking lot that I'll have to share. He was very uncertain about it (never seen a puddle on pavement before), but did go through it and was so cute!

When I got hot I threw my jacket over Chrome's back so he could carry it for me. :)

The jacket looks like saddlebags lol.

Checking out the neighbor on his four wheeler.

His expression isn't good in this one but I included it because it looks like he's carrying the sun on his back lol.

Handsome boy.

So I guess I'm a little frustrated for myself for not teaching him how to respond to a flat halter. It just never crossed my mind. I was happy with the majority of his behavior on the walk though.

Our awesome neighbor's help with a barn flooding problem . . .

2012-01-10T10:46:00.008-06:00

For those of you who are horsey photo addicts stick with me because the cute pictures are at the bottom of the post (well aside from the awesome one above hehe). I don't think I've mentioned it before, but our lease land is at the foot of a small mountain (not like Rocky Mountains type mountain, like foothills type mountain) so we get a lot of run off when it rains (especially the heavy downpours we've been getting). The big old barn on the lease land was built like a million years ago for working cattle so it's not really in the most ideal area on the land and it's been wallowed out over the years. So now the area where the horses seek shelter (thank goodness the hay area in the center of the barn is raised lol) is usually more than ankle deep in mud.

So our awesome neighbor brought his tractor over and helped us reroute the water around the barn by digging ditches for us. It would have taken forever doing this with a shovel because of the tree roots and the length of the ditch. Now it goes around the barn to the edge of our property and into the city maintained ditched by the road. :) It will take a while before all of the water is out of the barn, but now that it has a place to drain to it will dry up. The horses are going to appreciate it so much!

This is the length of the barn at the rear which has three doorways (one of which is blocked off for the lease land owner's storage purposes, we only get to use one side).

This is down the side. On the other side of those trees at the left of the picture the ditch turns left toward the road.

Widening the ditch some more. I want a tractor like his!

Looking through the barn back toward the house. See how much water is standing inside? Luckily it's mostly in the middle so they have been able to stand on the sides out of the water, but it will be much nicer now.

My husband used a shovel to dig a trench so it could drain. We will eventually fill in the hole and make a slope away from the barn to help prevent it backing up into the barn, but the tractor couldn't get that close, so it will have to be done by hand.

Okay, now on to the horses. Faran and Zeppelin were not at all impressed with the tractor. They weren't really scared unless it got too close so they kept their distance.

Handsome Faran!

Faran tried to follow Chrome, but the tractor got too close so he trotted back to donkey lol.

Chrome on the other hand was fascinated! My husband chased him away because he didn't want him too close, but Chrome just trotted back around (above) and stood watching (below) for ages!

He just stood there watching the tractor, totally fascinated.

Can you see the gears turning? So was his fascination a sign of intelligence, curiosity and bravery or just a dumb, easily amused brain?? LOL

Look how relaxed he is and how intently he watched the tractor.

My husband did finally let him come closer to investigate, which he took full advantage of.

He's so brave, facing a tractor without flinching!

Checking out the attachment on the rear of the tractor that he was digging with.

When we stopped for a break he took advantage of the lack of movement to touch the drag thing.

Back in motion again.

Reaching up for scratches and petting from the neighbor.

He eventually got bored and wandered off to graze (on our non-existent winter grass lol).

But he occasionally came back to check on our progress. :)

It was funny at one point he led the herd back to the front of the lease land where we feed them, I guess hoping we would follow and bring them an early supper lol. This is the order they always walk in. :)

He was so cute when he realized we weren't going to feed him he stood staring at us (subliminal messages?) from a distance (I zoomed in for this shot).

When I whistled he grew about a foot lol. Look at the other picture at how high he raised his head. So cute!

I love my beautiful boy. I love his confidence and calm curiosity. :D

Hope you enjoyed the pictures!

Chrome's Sidepull Completed

2012-01-07T16:43:00.014-06:00

Isn't Faran cute?

Well, I finished putting together Chrome's bitless sidepull bridle. :) None of my indoor pictures turned out very well because of the poor lighting, but this one below is okay.

If you click to enlarge (or just look closely) you can see that I put the D-rings and the noseband in the loop where the bit normally goes. Then I just clip the reins to those D-rings. :D Below are the only two pictures I really got of him wearing the bridle because we got distracted by his cuteness and forgot about the bridle lol!

Doesn't it look awesome on him??

Now here are the rest of the pictures. We took way too many lol.

In this picture I was asking him to smile and he kept stepping closer so I would step back (yeah I know I'm not supposed to yield my space to him, but he wasn't being ugly or anything) and he forgot to step his rear hooves forward so he ended up all stretched out like a Tennessee Walker (or some other breed they set up like that). :D He's so cute!

Faran is getting a lot more confident and is coming closer and closer to investigate while we're working with Chrome. Just messing around in his vicinity is free bonus desensitizing lol.

In this picture I was practicing having him turn his head for the reins (which he did so well he was doing lateral flexes lol!). Notice how the headstall (where the rings for the reins are attached) slid down the noseband? I'll have to put a keeper on it to keep it from sliding.

You have to click to enlarge the above picture. Faran's expression is adorable!

When standing on the pedestal Chrome now offers lifting his hooves. He actually offers his hooves all the time hoping for a click lol. I can be standing anywhere in the pasture talking to my husband (or whoever) about something and Chrome will stand there with one leg in the air, then switch and hold the other one in the air. It's too funny!

Offering his other leg. I wasn't cueing him to lift his leg. I had my hand up to get him to lower his head (he likes to stick it in the air and look around from his short vantage point lol), but I did notice looking back at the pictures that he picked up the leg on the side I held my hand up, so I'm wondering if I've unintentionally taught him a cue for picking them up hehe. Now I just need to teach him to wave. :D

Gorgeous boy! The dork was licking my sleeve in this picture for some reason. :)

Hugs! Sort of lol.

Look who came up behind me without my noticing until he started nibbling my fingers lol.

I love how carefully Chrome looks down to step off his pedestal.

Then the jealous little boy walked up beside me to see if Faran was getting treats lol.

"Mom, you better not be feeding Faran treats and not me!
I'm the smart one who stands on a pedestal looking cute for you!" LOL

I wanna ride!!!

Then I started goofing off and propped my foot up on his haunches hehe.

Asking him to yield his haunches so he can get back on the pedestal.

Then I grabbed Zeppelin's empty dinner bucket, which of course Chrome had to check to see if it was actually empty.

Then I let him hold it lol. He loves playing with anything I offer him.

Sat down for a second and got big kisses. I don't sit in front of him for long because he likes to pick his legs up too much on the pedestal and I don't want him to accidentally hit me.

Time to untack. Taking the saddle off while he stands on his pedestal.

Now the bridle.

This picture is so cute! It shows exactly why I don't care if my horse puts his head down to take his bridle off. Even on the pedestal he's still in easy reach for me. Being tall is so awesome sometimes. In fact I taught him to lower his head to get his halter off because it's a good habit, now he holds his head too low when I put the bridle on LOL!!

He looks like I spent five hours brushing him and truth is I didn't even take a brush with me when we took these pictures lol.

Carefully stepping off of the pedestal again. Does he always look sleepy eyed to you?

Another hug.

Asking for a shoulder yield and he did a perfect crossover step. He's so good at his yielding. :D

Well, that's all. :) I'll have even more pictures soon because our neighbor came over today to use his tractor to help us with a drainage problem and I got a ton of pictures of the horses being adorable.

Mango Minster 2012 Entry

2012-01-05T20:51:00.004-06:00

For those of you who have not been in the dog blogging community at all there is an awesome show every year called the Mango Minster (click for the rules to enter). Chrome has decided to enter this year because the dogs need a break lol. Chrome is entering the Adventurous category. I'll turn it over to him now. :)

Hey everyone, it's Chrome here. I'm so excited because mom said I can enter the Mango Minster this year!! I decided to enter the Adventurous category because I've been doing a lot of fun things lately. Check out this video showing all of the things I did in 2011 for the first time.

I told you I did a lot of adventurous things this year!

As you saw I wore a surcingle for the first time . . . actually I'm really good at wearing things! I've worn a surcingle, bells, party hats, ribbons, halters, bridles, blankets, tarps, bags, etc. I'm so good I could probably totally pull off a tuxedo too. :D I can just imagine it!

Click to enlarge.

Too funny, right? I also got to play with a four wheeler for the first time. I proved how adventurous and brave I am didn't I? I'm not scared of cars, trucks, vans, big moving trucks, trailers, tractors, etc. In fact, I'm so brave that I could probably face off with a backhoe without flinching!!

Click to enlarge.

Oh yeah, I could totally do that! I also like trying new adventurous things like the ground driving, tire pulling and other things like jumping (not in the video). One of my favorite new, adventurous games was Chase the Tiger! Of course mom isn't brave and didn't use a real tiger, but have no doubt I could chase one of those too.

Click to enlarge.

I could totally scare the kitty! In the video I also learned to climb up on a pedestal. Don't be fooled by my slow learning curve in the video, because after accomplishing the pedestal I can accomplish anything! I can even go on an adventurous climb like Mount Everest!!

Click to enlarge.

Nothing phases this brave dude! And one of the last things I did last year was swimming in the pond. Okay, so I wasn't swimming because it wasn't that deep, but I could! Swimming is adventurous, especially if you're also surfing!!

Click to enlarge.

Oh yeah!! I could totally surf! So, if I'm not one adventurous horse, then I have no clue what I am. :D Thanks for reading. My first show entry was a lot of fun! Mom did have to help me with the photo editing so we could show you my thoughts because I don't have fingers, but all the hard work was all me! :)

Thanks Mango for the opportunity to enter the famous Mango Minster!!

I made a sidepull bitless bridle!!!

2012-01-04T10:27:00.003-06:00

When my friend gave me that old Wintec saddle she also gave me this dressage bridle. I turned it into a sidepull bitless bridle by simply shortening the headstall and putting the noseband through the loops where the bit normally goes. After work I'll buy some rings to put where the noseband is (where the bit normally goes) so I can attach reins. Cool huh? I'm so excited because I've been looking at ideas on the internet for months on how to make my own bitless bridle and I finally thought of this all by myself lol. :D Here is a video if my written description doesn't make sense. Chrome's expression at the end of the video is awesome lol.

Also how much do you think I can sell this amazing two headed horse for??

P.S. Sorry for any errors. Running late and no time to proofread!

Chrome is awesome! Videos!

2012-01-03T05:00:00.000-06:00

I went to town to get some plywood so I can build a mounting block and when I got back I found Chrome and Zeppelin playing hard. Chrome was so beautiful galloping around the pasture. Check out this video. P.S. There is a surprise at the bottom so make sure to look at the whole post.

I'm such a bad momma for scaring him lol. He was being playful though because I walked right up to him after and he wasn't scared. I definitely do not ever want to be on his back when he shows off his acrobatic bucking. Here is a collage of screenshots (sorry the quality isn't great in video screenshots) I made of him bucking . . .

For those of you who can't see the video I got some screenshots for you . . .

Chrome is almost always the leader when they go for a gallop.

This is actually the second buck in a sequence here
and donkey got a face full from the first one lol.

Charging in for a bite . . .

Chomp!

Donkey rears up for retaliation as Chrome dives past.

Chomp! Doesn't Chrome look awesome in this shot. He looks like an Andalusian lol.

He had a full flagged tail going on while galloping huge circles around the pasture.

Super trot!! All four hooves off the ground.

It looks like he's staring right at me, but he didn't know I was there lol.
I think he was actually looking back behind him for the donkey who didn't follow him. Too cute!

This was after I spooked him on purpose so he'd flag his tail. Cute!!

And some still shots I got. These first four were continuous shoot so they came out weird.

Donkey is so cute!

Chrome stopped for a drink and Zep was licking him!! Why does he do that?

Look at that drool!

Okay, so after all of this galloping around, playing, bucking and in general goofing off, I did this . . .

Isn't he awesome? He was being mouthy because I gave him treats earlier, but I did not use a halter, rope or treats at all during this video to lead him to the pedestal so I could lay across his back. He walked off the first time I guess because he was still pumped up, but he didn't do anything bad. Then he was perfect on the other side. :) Here are some still shots for those who can't see videos.

Lined up next to the pedestal so I can hop on.

Then he walked off. First time he's done that.
Something we can work on when I actually build my mounting block.
The pedestal is a little low.

Being the good boy he is, he stopped and relaxed.
Does my horse make my butt look big? LOL

Then lined up the other side and stepped up to hop on.

And hopped up. He did great on this side.

He turned to look at me as I slid off. Cutie.

So do you think he'll be ready in May? :D

New Year Goals for 2012

2012-01-02T12:03:00.003-06:00

If you haven't seen it yet, check back two posts for a video of the things we worked on in 2011. I'm so proud of Chrome and all that we've done together. He's such a good boy.

So 2012 is the exciting year for us because he turns three years old! That means I finally get to start riding him after two and a half years of waiting. :D

So here are my goals for 2012 . . .

1. Ride Chrome! I bet you couldn't guess that would be my first one lol. My plan is to sit on him for the first time on his third birthday 5-19-2012. Depending on how he acts I may have my husband lead him around for a little bit, but I do want to make sure he's completely comfortable with me getting on and off before we do much moving around. To prepare for riding I'm going to build a mounting block and do a lot of practice standing next to it while I lean over him from both sides, wave my arms around and touch him all over. We're also going to work on ground driving to prepare him for being ridden. If he already knows voice cues and how to walk, halt and steer then the only new element will be having weight on his back. That should make it a lot easier for him.

2. Get Chrome in shape. I want to get Chrome in shape before I start riding him, so that he has the muscles to support me. The easiest way to do that would be longeing, but I don't want to stress his joints so we will go on lots and lots of hand walks around the property and on the roads. The roads will also have the benefit of continued trail desensitization. I'll also keep playing Chase the Tiger with him to get him moving around in the trot with his head low for building muscles over his back. Also what is everyone's opinion of cavaletti? Is two too young to trot cavaletti? If it is I can just walk him over them to make him pick up his feet. That will teach him to watch where he's going and also build muscle. I want to make this a slow, gentle process. I'm not going to overwork or over-condition him like a halter horse (not bashing, just using stereotypes for reference). I also want to walk him up and down hills because that's great for the back and learning to use his haunches. Anyone else have any suggestions for ways to get him ready for riding physically?

3. Get Chrome more comfortable with hauling in the trailer. I want to be able to start taking him places so I need to get him more comfortable in the trailer. If he's nervous and sweating I won't be able to go anywhere in the summer because he'll sweat to death. So I want to use the cool weather for practicing. I also need to teach him to stand tied in the trailer.

4. Introduce Chrome to obstacles used in Competitive Trail Rides. I want to build my own obstacle course and work with him on them, so that we can do CTRs someday. It will help build an even better bond between us and teach him to trust me as well, which will be great for trail riding in general.

5. Have fun with Chrome and be safe!! I think this is probably the most important one. So everyone when I start stressing because I don't think I'm doing enough or not doing it right please remind me of this one lol.

So that's the plan for 2012! I'll wrangle my husband down and get him to tell me what his goals for Faran are and get those posted as soon as possible, as well as some goals for Zep. I hope everyone has a happy, healthy, safe and productive year!!

The Real War Horse

2012-01-01T09:43:00.001-06:00

Have you guys seen this?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2080962/Warrior-REAL-War-Horse-braved-bullets-barbed-wire-shell-World-War-I.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

It's the story of the real war horse who was dubbed the horse the Germans couldn't kill. :) He lived to be thirty three years old! What an awesome horse.

I'll get my New Year Goals up tomorrow!

Chrome's Firsts of 2011 Video

2011-12-31T10:10:00.002-06:00

I put together a bunch of clips from 2011 of all of the new things Chrome did throughout the year. All of these clips are firsts for Chrome. First time wearing a saddle and surcingle. First time pulling something. First time being exposed to tractors and four wheelers. Lots of fun clips! Some of them are even clips I've never posted before on his blog. :D Check it out and let me know what you think.

Isn't he so cute? I think he's the most accepting, laid back, curious, interactive horse I've ever known. In my completely and totally biased opinion he's the best horse on the planet. :D Have a safe and happy New Year everyone!!

Failed Christmas Picture Shoot!

2011-12-27T19:06:00.008-06:00

We decided to get the horses all dolled up for some Christmas pictures, but it was getting late and the lighting was horrible! Our skin turned out very overexposed in all of them. They were still cute though so I decided to post them anyway. Just focus on the cute horses instead of the scary glowing ghosts (me and my husband) holding them. We will try again another day, hopefully in the morning when the light should be better. Any suggestions on the right lighting for portraits?? I'll do some Google searches and see what I can turn up. Thanks guys! Enjoy the pictures.

Chrome enjoyed his thorough grooming. I even ran a damp rag over his coat to get rid of the dust streaks. :D

Trying to line them up so you could see the size difference between Faran and Chrome.

Isn't Chrome cute in his matching hat?? He doesn't look impressed, although he was such a good boy about wearing everything. The thing around his neck and along his mane is something I made with a hot glue gun, decorative silver rope, red bead string and silver jingle bells. It took forever, but was so fun. I'll try to get a better picture of it when we have better lighting.

They aren't lined up perfectly and the camera angle is off so you can't really see the height difference, but check out how different their backs are. Chrome's back is so much longer than Faran's! It won't look as long once he has some muscling through the loins, but it's still interesting to see how different they are. Are all Percherons so short coupled? Also look at the difference in their legs! Wow!

While my husband was fiddling with Faran's rope Chrome gave me the cutest picture ever! Check it out . . .

Look how CUTE he is!!

I got a lot of pictures like this one while I was resetting the self timer. Chrome was being a pest and kept trying to bite Faran lol. I think he was jealous of sharing the spotlight. :D

I love this one. Faran looks awesome (no clue what he was watching) all puffed up and makes my husband and Chrome look small lol. I like how my husband's face is framed between theirs hehe.

This one turned out pretty well even though I'm standing weird and Chrome's ear is back. I'm so proud of him for wearing the hat over on ear though lol. He's so tolerant!

Me and Chrome.

Led Zeppelin decided to join in and Chrome tried to tell him off hehe. Aren't they adorable?

This picture makes Chrome's face look so grown up.

I like this one. I was holding my tripod bag because I was throwing it to make him put his ears forward and he put them forward before I could even throw it LOL.

Always have to have a cute smiling picture.

Chrome is so cute. He's watching our neighbor driving down his driveway.

And now for some of hubby and Faran. I was so proud of Faran! He was so brave about the jingle bells. :)

Percheron rolkur? Haha just kidding. He was reaching for a treat.

Reaching for treats again. We've turned him into a total treat whore, but if that's what it takes to gain his trust that's what we will do. Besides he's always a perfect gentleman.

They are so cute together.

As it got darker the pictures turned out so grainy. Faran is so fuzzy in his wonderful winter coat.

Chrome was sooooo bored waiting while Faran got his picture taken. I caught him on the end of a yawn here.

At one point when we were preparing for a picture Zep tried to tear the tripod apart lol. He almost dragged it off. I chased him away and saved my camera, then a bit later he came up behind me while I was taking pictures. You can see me on the left side of the picture. Cutie Zep!

And the two best (not very good) group pictures that I ended up with . . .

We will try again when there is better light. :D Hoping for some that aren't overexposed. Thanks for checking out our first attempt. Later!

Merry Christmas! - Equine Christmas Gifts!

2011-12-25T20:54:00.009-06:00

Click to enlarge.

Merry Christmas!! I wanted to share our Christmas morning with the boys. Here is their stocking . . .

I made my husband hold it so you can see how big it is hehe.

We let Chrome check it out . . .

Want to see what is in it?

Chrome does too hehe. Do you like my husband's jacket? I got that for him for Christmas. :)

My husband removes the first item . . .

It's a bell! With a handy handle on it for Chrome to hold in his teeth. :D

Chrome held it for a second, but he wasn't incredibly interested in it hehe.

What else? What else? Observant readers probably already know, but if not you'll have to wait.

Faran finally got brave and decided to check out the stocking.

Stretches out to give it a sniff.

And gives it a nibble.

I was leaning over Chrome's butt to take this shot of them together lol.

While my husband was holding the stocking Chrome accidentally got it stuck on his head lol.

He proceeded to walk, completely unconcerned, to his feed bucket to check for breakfast.

My husband put the stocking over Chrome's back so Faran could look at it some more.
He completely smeared it with slime lol. I love this picture of him. Look at those beautiful brown eyes!

Faran also played with the bell a little.

He thought it was a treat! When he realized it wasn't he lost interest.

And pictures of Chrome modeling his Christmas present (that I've been wanting to buy for a while, but it has been too expensive and was finally on sale yay!).

My favorite color blue! Doesn't it look awesome on him? It's a little big (so hopefully his head will grow a little - anyone know if his head is as big as it will get at two and a half?), but I can always put more holes in it if necessary. It has an adjustable crown piece and chin strap. It also has the snap on the throatlatch which I love (lazy hehe). In the above picture the strap between the chin and throatlatch was shifted to the side. Normally it's below his jaw.

Isn't it cute on him?

What does Chrome think of his new halter?

You tell me!

Led Zeppelin was feeling like a scrooge. He wanted nothing to do with our celebrations and only wanted breakfast lol!

Sorry the pictures weren't that great. The lightning was bad and Faran was so dirty lol. I think they had fun though and I know I did! Merry Christmas everyone!!

Beginning Stages of Driving Training with Chrome

2011-12-20T05:00:00.001-06:00

Yesterday Chrome got his hooves done, so as always I got him out about an hour ahead of time to spend time grooming him. Doesn't he look fantastic?? He doesn't even look like he has a winter coat in pictures. Of course it hasn't gotten really cold yet. Is the flax making him shinier?

Silly boy was playing with the fence in this picture. I brushed him and combed out his mane and tail.

I know it's just the farrier, but I like for him to look nice instead of being a fuzzy mudball when she comes over. I always spend a lot of time cleaning out his hooves and cleaning off his legs so she doesn't have to deal with muddy feet. Just something I like to do to be helpful. :D

Trying to check out the battery charger my husband sat nearby, but his lead was too short lol.

Pretty tail! You can see the white in his tail. Is the blonde the color it comes in or is it because it's dirty? Would washing it make it whiter (I don't care for the blonde)? It happened so gradually I didn't even notice if it came in that color or came in white and changed to blonde.

See how it goes black, white, blonde? It is sort of cute actually lol.

There is white in his mane, but none (well not much) of the blonde thank goodness lol. I know he only has one copy of the gray gene which means he'll gray out slowly, but what goes first? It looks like his face, mane and tail are graying the fastest. Anybody have any guesses about when he will go dappled gray? Since his mom is flea-bitten do you think he will turn flea-bitten too? I can't find much info online about the genetics of flea-bitten gray. It will definitely be interesting to watch as he changes over the years and I'll be thrilled if he stays dark a while longer. :) Also will his legs go gray too or stay black? My trainer's horse had black knees for years but I think they eventually faded. I never met him as a baby though so I don't know what grayed first, how quickly he grayed, how many gray genes he has, what his base coat was, etc. He's ten or eleven now and just now losing his dapples and getting flea-bitten. I hope it takes that long or longer for Chrome lol.

I had a brilliant idea the other day. Using my surcingle and breastcollar I can make sort of a harness. I couldn't find my nice breastcollar so I used one of my husband's old, old breastcollars. Cute, huh?

The red and white actually looks adorable on him. :)

His forelock almost reaches his noseband (his halter stretched from that episode in the trailer).

I wish this one wasn't blurry! I love his smile!!

Trying to reach the grooming box that was sitting on the log just out of the picture.

My husband scratched Chrome's itchy spot. Chrome was all stretched out, wiggling his lip, being absolutely adorable! He couldn't reach it to scratch for himself because of the breastcollar so he appreciated the help.

And he proceeded to dunk his lips in my husband's hot chocolate LOL! He didn't know it was hot so it startled him. I hate that it burned him, but it didn't seem to bother him. Maybe he'll think twice before sticking his nose where it doesn't belong lol. See the chocolate on his lip? And the green/yellow around the corner of his lips is from the apple treats I was feeding (that he isn't sure he likes, but they were on sale lol).

Now I will show you the video of what we did with my rigged harness. Faran lovers here is a picture (above) and check out the video because there are some adorable shots of him. I tried to edit the video down because it was pretty long. It's still long, but I hope some of you can see it. :)

He did so great! I'm glad I kept those old tires. :) I can't wait to eventually hook him up to my gorilla cart (wagon/wheelbarrow combo), but I want to go slow. Just because he wasn't scared of the tire doesn't mean we can move on after only one session. I'm excited how well he did with it. I hope this is a sign that he will someday make a good driving horse. :D Now I just have to save the money to buy a wagon/buggy and harness . . . but wait first I need a saddle lol. Sorry I talked so much in the video. Wasn't Faran cute?? I didn't mean to scare him, but he is getting a whole lot less explosive. Now for some pictures for those of you who can't see videos.

He did so well. I don't know why he chose to carry his head low (maybe because we work on it so much?), but that's actually a good thing because it builds the muscles over his topline (correct me if I'm wrong) instead of the muscles at the base of his neck. I was not cueing him to lower his head, he was offering it on his own. I think part of it was also because of the new treats. I don't think he's that crazy about them. They are longer than the ones I've been feeding him so he was sucking on them until he could chew them up. That's why we took such long breaks between pulls. I didn't want to stuff his mouth so full that he would drop them.

He makes it look so heavy lol, but it's not. I can easily pick up the tire. How often should I work on this? Pulling doesn't stress their backs like riding so it won't hurt him on mostly straight lines (to protect his joints) right? It's been so long since I researched all of this lol. I guess I need to go do some reading.

Such a sweet, sane boy. It never scared him, even when we trotted (see video). :D

Stopping to let Faran approach the tire . . .

Faran did well too. It scared him a couple of time when it would move near him, but he never lost his curiosity so that's awesome.

Faran is so gorgeous!

I really wasn't expecting him to carry his head low. I thought he would stick his nose in the air and hollow his back. He surprised me and I'm thrilled with how he did.

Walking back to the gate.

Leaning on his back makes him look tall lol. It took about six shots to get this picture because he kept trying to play with the breast collar. I finally gave him one of the big pieces of treat that he's not crazy about so he would stand still. He has that expression on his face because he was sucking on it lol. He's such a dork. His mane is getting so long. I wish he wouldn't rub it out near his withers. Brat. :D

The boys say goodbye until next time!

Chrome's Monthly Progress Report

2011-12-19T12:15:00.006-06:00

Date: 12-19-11
Age: 2 Years & 7 Months (31 Months)
Height: 15.1hh
Height Gain: Yeah, so he was overdue for a trim and was done today, so now he's slightly over 15.1hh again, which means we cut off almost half an inch of hoof. Oops. His hooves look gorgeous again. :)
Weight: His measurements were the same so he's still 1010lbs.
Weight Gain: No weight gain.

Progress: Chrome is now a gelding!! I finally got it done and I'm so happy I did. I'm wondering if it's already having an effect on him (been three weeks) because he was an ANGEL today!! I'll give more details in another post.

Goals: Since it's almost Christmas and almost January (which means freezing cold weather) I'm not really going to set any goals. Just continue to care for my boy, take him for walks when it's warm enough (I'm a wimp) and play with clicker training when we can. That's all. :D

And since Chrome is growing a lot slower now that he's no longer a baby I thought of something fun I can do on his Monthly Progress Reports to keep it interesting. For each Progress Report I'm going to post a picture from the same month for every previous year, so when he's ten you'll be able to see the changes in his growth and color all in one post. I think it will be fun to see how much he changes.

12-19-2009

He was so butt high and tiny!!

12-20-2010

12-19-2011

Total cutie!! Keep an eye out for a post tomorrow. We did something really exciting!!

P.S. Wow, after reviewing this post I just realized he's butt high right now too. Maybe he's headed into another growth spurt. :)

Random Thoughts About Chrome

2011-12-18T22:09:00.003-06:00

Picture taken October 2011.

Chrome gets his hooves done tomorrow and it's also the nineteenth so I'll be measuring him and taking pictures. :) As it gets closer and closer to May when he'll turn three I think more and more about riding him. The excitement is starting to edge out the nervousness. I've been thinking about how much I'm going to ride him and what speed we're going to progress with training and I'm leaning toward overly cautious. I want to be riding Chrome when he's twenty five years old, so I don't want to do too much with him too soon and risk injury or early onset of arthritis.

So here are my thoughts. I want to sit on him for the first time on May 19th 2012 the day he turns three years old. I've leaned across his back on my belly, but for actually sitting on him I want to wait. I'm not sure why. I guess so I'll always remember the day I sat on him the first time or something. I can be very sentimental, but you all probably just think I'm being a dork. So the plan is on that day to sit on him and take some pictures. Then I'll spend a week or so just getting on (I'll train him to stand by a mounting block before then), click/treat, get off and repeat a few times until he gets completely comfortable with it and isn't goosey or anything. We might also work on stuff like dropping things, taking off/putting on jackets, etc.

When he's totally comfortable with mounting and dismounting I'll ask him to do lateral flexes to both sides, so I'll have my emergency brake (I know that's controversial to some people, but it has served me well, so I'll teach it to him). I can then work on disengaging the hindquarters. When he's good with that I'll ask him to walk with someone leading him in case he panics. I'll teach him to move off a gentle leg pressure/voice cue with a leader before trying it on my own. When we're walking on our own I'll work on the one rein stop so he knows how to do it out of a walk from both sides. When we have a good walk, whoa and one rein stop I'll work on steering. I'll also work on moving his shoulders around at this point and backing with a relaxed topline.

I'll probably only ride once a week for a while, just working on the basics for ten minutes or however long his attention span holds and just do hand walking/ponying/clicker session for the rest of the week. As his attention span increases I'll ride for up to twenty minutes at the walk. When he's really good at all of that in the pasture I'll take him out on the trail, with a leader or pony horse if I can find one. As his "carrying" muscles get stronger and he feels more balanced and stronger I might introduce trotting a little bit. The only thing with trotting is that I don't have a saddle so this will all be bareback until I can afford one. I may be able to get a bareback pad with stirrups (do those put too much direct pressure on the spine?) though so we will see. I don't want to be bouncing around on his back and teach him to hollow it to protect himself. I'll see if I can find a horse to practice my sitting trot with. I used to be able to do it without bouncing, but that was around five years ago so I'm sure I'm out of practice. So trotting will happen when we are both ready for it.

I'll give him the winter off and when he turns four I'll review the basics and definitely be trotting by then. When his trot is balanced and strong I'm going to start longeing him. I like the idea of teaching new behaviors on the longe so he can learn them without the interference of a rider, but I don't want to longe him too early since circles can be so stressful on his joints and growth plates. I'll only longe for ten minutes and use it to teach voice cues for walk, trot, canter, whoa, back and changing direction. Once he knows the cue for cantering I'll add it under saddle. I don't want him to learn to trot faster and faster into the canter. I want him to have a forward trot, but not a scrambling one. I know the transitions will be sloppy starting out, I just don't want it to become a habit. Trotting fast into the canter is one of the most annoying habits to me (well besides the dangerous ones lol). I know it's all about the strength and balance to do it, which I why I want to introduce it on the longe first (or grounding driving if I get good enough at it to work at the canter lol) so he builds the muscle to make a smooth transition from a nice working trot.

By the time he's late four or early five I'll probably start dressage lessons on him. Before that it will just be trail riding and messing around in the pasture. I don't want to ask him to carry himself in a frame too soon, but I don't want to pay for lessons just to teach the basics if that makes any sense. We will take all of it slow and I'll only progress as he's ready.

Anyway, sorry for rambling on. I've just been thinking about it a lot and wanted to write it all down. Suggestions, advice and opinions are always welcome. :D

I'm Back & Chrome Update

2011-12-15T22:14:00.003-06:00

Sorry I completely forgot to tell everyone I was going out of town for a few days to visit family. I was really nervous leaving on Monday because Chrome had just finished his third day of antibiotics (Uniprim) and was still a little swollen. Upon returning tonight though I'm happy to report that everything is healed up nicely and there is no swelling!! I'm so happy and relieved. Worrying about Chrome took some of the fun out of my visit, but I had really good friends checking in on him so I knew he was doing okay. :D I have until Wednesday before I have to go back to work so hopefully the weather will improve (cold and rainy) so I can get new pictures and play with my ponies that I missed so much while I was gone. For now though I need sleep. It seems weird to be exhausted sitting in a truck all day but it is lol. Night!

Chrome's First Trailer Freak Out - Video

2011-12-10T15:46:00.005-06:00

First I'll mention that everyone is okay! And second . . . I got it on video haha.

I decided to work on Chrome's trailer loading since it's such a nice day and I get off work in the afternoon on the weekends. I wanted to get a video so I could show you all what his comfort level is on the trailer since I was asking earlier in the week about this.

So here is a video of us working on loading . . .

Edited to add: I forgot to mention in the beginning of this first video I was spraying iodine on his incisions from his gelding/castration. I included it just to show how awesome he is with being medicated. Everyone I talked to about him (including the vet) was like no don't use the hose, don't medicate, don't pick hay out of the incisions because you'll most likely get kicked . . . I was like, uh, okay. In the video you'll see why I was skeptical LOL. He was totally unconcerned. As I stand back up something by the road startled him. That's like the biggest spook I've seen in a year from him lol. ;D

We worked on more than this video shows, but my batteries died. After I changed the batteries I set the camera back up and got this . . .

Sorry there is no sound. I messed up something in the video editor and didn't feel like going back to fix it after going through all of the effort of uploading it. Here is what happened. This is an older trailer and I had noticed before that one of the old tie rings was broken, but I didn't think much of it because he couldn't cut himself on it where it was placed. Now I'm wishing I'd gotten it cut off lol.

Somehow when I gathered the rope in my hand I must have made a knot in it. Once he was in I dropped the rope because I always just let it feed back out when I ask him to back out of the trailer. I've never had a problem with it before. In the video the knot managed to get hung in the old tie ring when he started to back out (how does this bizarre crap happen??). When he felt the tension in the rope he panicked (we haven't worked on tying in the trailer yet - and no I won't be tying him in a rope halter). I couldn't get the rope loose with his weight on it because I had to pull it toward me to get the knot out of the ring. We finally managed to get him to step forward enough to get the halter off and I eventually managed to get the rope loose while he grazed nearby.

I'll be getting that ring removed ASAP! I didn't want to end the session on a bad note so I worked with him some more. Unfortunately I totally forgot to turn the camera back on. At first I had to click him for every step into the trailer, but within five minutes he was walking on again. I practiced putting very light pressure on his halter until he stepped forward then I would release the pressure and click/treat. I quickly got him stepping forward off the pressure. I've always let him walk on by himself so that was the first time he'd ever felt resistance on the trailer. :( Oh well, no harm done and hopefully since he wasn't hurt this just reinforces his trust in me although I'm sure it didn't help his comfort level on the trailer. Everyone please use this as a reminder to check your trailer carefully for anything your horse can hurt himself on.

I'm hoping this was just us getting all of the bad out of the way right off the bat lol. It shook me up pretty bad, but I'm going to keep working on trailer loading with him (once I have the ring removed), but I'll be more careful with the rope from now on. So, what do you think? He did pretty good considering the circumstances right? And notice at the end how he turned around? He does that in the trailer while it's moving! That's why I have to start tying him, although I'm definitely not looking forward to it now haha!!

Edited to add a video I took a few hours after the above incident . . .

Such a good boy! How many horses totally panic like than and then walk right back on a couple of hours later? I'm so proud of him.

Chrome Gelding/Castration Update

2011-12-09T20:09:00.002-06:00

Chrome is doing great, but that one incision still looks a little iffy so I did get some antibiotics for him, just to be on the safe side. :) Hopefully I'll be able to gets some pictures of the horses and donkey tomorrow. I feel bad not posting any, but since my boss has been sick I've been working from the time I get up in the morning until it gets dark outside. Yuck. One of the worse parts about winter is these short, short days.

Chrome Update - A Question About Trailers & Hauling

2011-12-07T19:51:00.002-06:00

First an update on Chrome's gelding/castration. He still feels fantastic and the best news is that today was the first day that he had no swelling and no filling in his sheath. Yay!! The bad news is that while his right incision looks great, his left is still pretty open and I can see puss forming in it. It's not draining, but I can definitely see it so I guess there is some infection going on. The frustrating part is that the vet wasn't in today so I have to wait until tomorrow to call him and I can't give antibiotics for seven days because we will be out of town for a couple of days and my only friend I trust to give them has a broken arm . . . so I'm going to see if the vet will let us do another shot of penicillin. I wish I could just reschedule my plans, but work won't let me switch vacation days once they're made. So frustrating and stressful!! I'm just happy that he's still acting like he feels good and it's not swollen anymore. I'll just talk to the vet tomorrow and see what I need to do.

My other question is in regards to hauling. Chrome loads well at home, but he gets very stressed during the trailer ride. He almost always is sweating no matter how cold it is when we get to our destination. I don't want him that stressed about hauling. He also is very difficult to reload when we're not at home. I can't leave the back doors open because right now I'm hauling loose (he's never been tied in a trailer) and he acts like he wants to jump out. It's an enclosed two horse bumper pull, but it does have narrow windows running the length of it that used to have plexi glass and are now open because it broke, which is why I think he likes to turn around (no divider) because he can see. The front where the head goes is completely enclosed except for a couple of ventilation holes. That has to be scary for a horse. I do plan to eventually teach him to tie in a trailer using one of those slider tie rings so that if he ever fell or totally panicked the rope would pull through and not hang him up. So any suggestions on getting him more comfortable in the trailer??

I also would like to buy a head bumber for him in case he ever reared or hit his head (he loads and unloads calmly, but I don't know what he does on the trailer when it's moving - wish I had a camera lol), but I've never bought one before. I've held off a while because I though they were expensive, but I finally looked and some are as cheap at $10, however I know with a lot of things you get what you pay for. So any experience with cheap versus expensive? Any dos or don'ts? Brands? Any advice at all I'm very appreciative of. :)

Chrome's Feeling Good!

2011-12-06T13:28:00.004-06:00

Picture taken April 2010.

When I called the horses up to eat breakfast I could see Chrome kicking at the donkey and then he chased Faran around the barn. They started trotting across the pasture and Chrome cantered past Faran and did some athletic bucking and jumped the little creek (that is actually a ditch, but after all the rain looks like a creek haha). Faran gave a buck in response and they galloped up to eat their breakfast.

Chrome’s incisions look exactly like yesterday so no new swelling yay! Since it was thirty five degrees outside I decided to just take him for a short walk. Chrome felt GREAT! He was shaking his head, tried to nip me (only once!), rubbed his nose on the pavement, played tug of war with his lead rope and was prancing like a fancy Friesian stallion. He was soooo beautiful!! He would sort of prance beside me asking if he could trot and I’d start running and he would trot out beside me with his neck all arched and gorgeous. I love when my boy feels so full of himself. I hope he doesn't lose his presence and personality now that he's gelded.

During the entire walk he was walking up next to me, arching his neck, lowering his head, asking to trot, anything trying to earn a click (which of course I didn’t have my darn clicker) so I gave him a wither scratch and praise instead. He was so cute. We didn’t go far because I forgot to wear a hat and my ears HURT!!!

At one point when Faran and Zep galloped up to the fence Chrome flagged his tail and pranced beside me. He was so gorgeous! Sorry I keep saying that. Then I walked around the house and Faran thought we were going the other way down the road so he galloped (bucking half the way) around to the other road. Adorable!! I wish I'd taken my camera!

When I put Chrome up he trotted out to Faran with his neck arched to sniff noses. I guess this is the one good thing about cold weather is the horses feel so good (and look good feeling good!). :D

Working With Faran - Video!

2011-12-05T12:50:00.005-06:00

Sorry for the double post today!

Okay, I finally had the time to work on Faran's post. Editing videos is so time consuming. I think I'll be getting some new video editing programs through my husband's school, yay! Hopefully it will be easier. :) Of course nothing makes uploading to YouTube any easier hehe. Anyway the first video is of my husband working on Faran's front hooves. I didn't put any captions, because I pretty much talk through the whole thing so you can tell what is going on. So have your volume up if you can.

For everyone who can not see the video here are some pictures. He did really well with his front hooves. :)

Here is the video of working with his rear hooves. Things seemed to start out okay, but our neighbor's came out of their house across the road and Faran got distracted. At that point he started refusing to pick up his hooves. We eventually gave up and had him pick up his front hooves again to end on a good note. I don't think he's ready to pick up his rear hooves right now. Everything was low key and calm though, so no harm done. :)

I didn't get any still shots of the rear hoof work, but here are some of Faran asking for treats. :) I love how much more comfortable he is with us.

After we finished the hoof work my husband asked him to lower his head, which you will see in the next video. Then we spent some time hanging out and taking pictures and he surprised us by offering to lower his head all by himself!! Check it out in this video.

Here are some still shots for everyone who can't view videos.

He's so smart lowering his head all by himself. :D Well, that's all for today. What do you think? Are they getting more comfortable together? My husband is still a little slow sometimes with his timing, but he's improving. He just needs more practice.

Exciting Longeing Update

2011-12-05T11:12:00.003-06:00

Picture taken February 2011.

Chrome did awesome!!! We had the brilliant idea of going out to the barn since he was out there anyway instead of doing everything while standing out in the rain. It worked great because there are old cattle feeders in the big barn and I was able to put everything on it instead of trying to stuff it in my pockets or hang on to it. Everything stayed drier too.

Chrome did so much better on the longe line. I think partly it was because the area was flatter. He kept a nice, slow trot (and still mud and water was splashing everywhere!). I never realized how much suspension the boy has when he wants to lol. The most exciting part of today is that he started offering to lower his head while trotting on the longe!!! I wish I could have had my clicker, but with the rain it’s too hard to handle everything. I was wearing a full rain suit (which the horses are doing great with) and it makes moving around awkward.

So when he would lower his head I would say whoa (drawn out, not said in a clipped tone) and he would immediately stop, then I would walk to him and feed him a treat! Sometimes when I would say whoa he would try to walk toward me, but if I put my arms in the air and said whoa he would stop. Then when I got to him I would have him back up and shoulder yield over until he was back on the circle before I fed a treat. If I’m consistent I think he’ll figure it out.

Getting back to the middle of the circle is the part I was having problems with. If I turned my back to him he would try to follow, but walking backwards was a little iffy in the mud and rain suit. And when I would get almost back to the middle he would start trotting on the circle before I ever said anything which I thought was pretty cool lol.

What I ended up doing is when I ask him to whoa I would drop the rope and whip and walk to him, so when I would go back to the middle I picked up the rope and asked him to trot on (with no whip and he did it hehe), letting the rope feed out until he was on a big circle and I would just move the circle over until I could pick up the whip again. It worked great! I’m glad we’re finally figuring things out together. This has been an experience!!

As far as his incision it looks good. I couldn’t get all of the scabs off this time, but I don’t know for sure if I really needed to. It was draining a little before I started, by the end it wasn’t really draining much, which I’m hoping means there wasn’t anything left to drain?? The swelling is way down and the filling in his sheath seems to be going down some too. I think he’s finally healing up. Keeping my fingers crossed the swelling doesn’t come back.

I promise I'm working on Faran's post. Editing video just takes time lol.

Quick Chrome Update - Kinda Gross Details LOL

2011-12-04T17:23:00.006-06:00

Picture taken 10-20-2009.

Just wanted to drop in for an update about Chrome's exercise program and healing from his gelding/castration. Yesterday after doing some research online I started using a warm, wet rag to moisten his scabs with. So our routine is use the compress on the scabs, longe for five minutes at the trot, use compress, longe five minutes in the other direction, etc.

Yesterday I managed to get the scab off of the right side and all of the swelling was gone by the time we finished longeing, but the left side was still a little swollen. I kept soaking and very, gently rubbing the scab until I peeled up one side, but by that time he had started to sweat (don't want him sweating too much in this cold rain), so I called it a night.

Today I worked on both scabs. This time it was the opposite side. The whole scab came off of the left side and all of the swelling worked out of it. Then the right side was being stubborn. I finally got the scab off and the swelling down. I think this is the first time both have been even in days lol. I bet he feels SO much better. :D

So both scabs are removed and the swelling is down in both sides. His sheath is still full of fluid, but it doesn't bother him and it's completely normal. I'm glad we've found something that works finally. The only thing that concerns me now is the ridiculous amounts of rain we're getting (we've set new record rainfalls, are under flash flood warning and water is standing out in the pasture because it can't get into the pond) has the ground soooo wet. Chrome is still a bit unhappy about the longeing process and sometimes takes off cantering and slips around. I'm terrified of him falling or pulling a muscle. We're moving spots each time we work (which is horribly tearing up our grass), but if this keeps up (supposed to rain two more days) we are going to run out of spots!! I wish I had an indoor arena lol. I'll just try to keep him in grassy areas so he hopefully won't slip. He's doing pretty good about slowing down when he does slip and I'm walking a little to move the circle over during each lap.

Anyway this weekend was crazy like I expected, so I'll get Faran's post up tomorrow since I don't have to work (thank goodness!!). Later!

Crash Course in Longing

2011-12-02T18:04:00.005-06:00

Picture taken October 2011.

Chrome has started to swell more so I started thinking maybe hand walking wasn't going to be enough to keep the incision open and draining, so I decided to try longeing, that way I could keep him at a trot for a longer amount of time. I've put off teaching him to longe so far because I didn't want to stress his joints by having him on a circle, but I don't think longing him for a few more days while he heals will cause any problems with his joints. The incisions are pretty scabbed over and I don't want it to heal on the outside before the inside heals, so trot we did!

I used one of my long driving reins and took him out into the pasture. I had to pop the whip behind him for a second (without touching him) to get him to go, but boy once he started moving he took off (at a trot). He kept trying to take off in a straight line away from me and when I'd pull him around on a circle he would stop. It only took two or three times before he figured out going in a circle. :) As lazy as he is I rarely get to see his pretty movement anymore, but wow on the longe he looks nice! Obviously he had his head in the air and he was trotting really fast, but he will figure that out eventually. At least I have a nice, forward trot. I was worried he would be extremely balky (not want to move forward).

I could tell he was not happy with the situation at all, but I don't really have a choice. I need him moving to get that incision draining. I really don't want to take him back to the vet to get the incisions opened back up. I had him on a large circle, probably about twenty meters, so hopefully it wasn't too stressful on his joints. He kept the circle pretty round except on the path leading to the gate he tried to run off each time around (remind me to wear gloves next time eek! No burns this time luckily). I moved him up near the fence so the round pen panels blocked that side and he did much better.

The really cool part is that after longing for about ten minutes I was able to drop the whip and keep him going. :D And even more awesome is that when I said whoa he STOPPED!! He was so awesome. I didn't have to pull his head around or jerk on his head or anything. I just said whoa and he stopped and stood still so I could walk up to him and hug him. I was worried he would try to walk toward me, but he didn't. Chrome is such a good boy.

When we finished our longeing the incisions were draining again, so that's awesome. :) Poor guy was miserable. I think it was hurting pretty bad. I feel awful for forcing him to move, but it's better than getting an infection. I spent some time walking around with him and giving him treats to make it up to him lol. He appreciated that part of it. So I'll keep doing that until he's healed, then I'll leave longeing alone until he's three. When he's three I'll teach him how to longe correctly. At least he has the circle part of it figured out lol. Anyway sorry for rambling. Later guys!

P.S. Forgot to mention we worked with Faran today on picking up his hooves and I got pictures and video. I'll post it tomorrow if I have time. Weekends really suck at work so we will see.

Chrome's Walk + Clicker Training

2011-12-01T18:10:00.003-06:00

Picture taken August 2011

On tonight’s walk we had so much fun. I decided to walk back and forth in front of the house because I didn’t want to miss my husband leaving for class. I took Chrome's target so we could work on trotting since that's really good for the incision. When I went into the house to get his treats and target I was looking for the clicker and he actually followed me into the house with his flanks about even with the doorway lol. Luckily his hooves didn’t mess up the floor.

So we worked on walking, trotting, halts and lowering his head. He did great. He was getting excited and being kind of bratty, but I don’t care because it means he feels good and he wasn’t being ugly or dangerous. He was really into the trotting because he was following the target. The only problem I had with that is that he was getting a little ahead of me about thirty percent of the time and he was biting at the target about ninety percent of the time. Dude has some jaws on him lol.

With the halts I was swinging the target to his chest to get a quick halt and he did well, except for biting at it (which was cute because of the curled neck) and he was lifting one or other of his front legs. Too cute. Maybe it won’t be hard to teach him to do the Spanish Walk and rear (way, way in the future) by targeting his knees to the target. :D

With the head lowering he offers it on his own at the walk and at the trot I hold the target low so that he reaches down. Toward the end of the walk I had the target under my arm and he wasn’t offering to lower his head like he usually does so I reached up and squeezed his crest (top of his neck) and he lowered it!! He did it several times so I know it wasn’t a fluke.

When we were done I led him back to the house and put up his target and treats. Then I led him toward the pasture. This is the most exciting part, he actually pulled me over to the horse trailer!! We have to pass it on our way to the pasture. He hung his head over the ramp like he wanted to load so I lowered it. He immediately walked halfway on with no hesitation and looked at me like he was waiting for his treat. Stupid me had already put them in the house but I praised him vocally. Then he started playing with the bedding in the floor of the trailer. I finally asked him to back off and let him graze a little. I was so excited! He obviously does not associate the trailer with going to the vet and being in pain. Thank goodness!! :D

Equine Slaughter Houses Back? Opinions?

2011-11-30T09:02:00.001-06:00

http://yourlife.usatoday.com/fitness-food/story/2011-11-30/Horses-could-soon-be-slaughtered-for-meat-in-US/51495306/1

Chrome's First Walk After Gelding/Castration - Video!

2011-11-29T19:29:00.002-06:00

I took Chrome for his first walk this morning since he was gelded/castrated yesterday. He did great! He was reluctant at times with his ears back and his tail switching from side-to-side so I think he is feeling some discomfort. He's so stoic about it though so it's hard to tell how much pain he's in. I wish there was something I could do for him. I know horses are tough because showing weakness in the wild could get them killed. Millions of horses have been gelded though so he will be fine. Once this is past he will be so much better off. :)

Our shadows as we walk up from the pasture together.
My shadow makes me look fat lol.
Well my coat does anyway.

Hubby went with us and took the dogs.
Gotta love multitasking.

He did some yawning. Silly boy always does that though.

Reluctant to walk at times, but that was partly due to Faran neighing at him lol.

Watching Faran.

Checking out a puddle and of course he stepped over the rope and pulled it out of my hand right into the mud lol.

Check out this video of our walk.

When we got back from the walk Chrome and Zeppelin were playing together. Chrome was cantering and trotting around and playing bitey face with him. I'm glad he's doing so well but I cringe watching him lol. I'll keep everyone updated. :D

Chrome's Gelding/Castration Photos

2011-11-28T15:34:00.010-06:00

Chrome loaded up fine at the house. When we got to the vet clinic about fifteen minutes away he was sweating and it was in the mid forties Fahrenheit today, so the trailer definitely makes him nervous. Poor baby. We will work on it more in the spring.

He unloaded perfectly and was very curious about everything around him, but definitely not overly excited. He was being a tad bit pushy, but settled down with a firm reminder. The picture above is when he first got out of the trailer and he was waiting with my husband while I told them we had arrived.

We walked him around a bit because it was freezing (to me anyway) and I forgot my gloves and hat. I was so cold! He enjoyed exploring a little.

We had to wait about thirty minutes. It was torture. So cold and windy and I was soooo nervous. The waiting was awful for me, luckily I had my awesome friends there to joke and make me laugh to distract me (and to take pictures). They were awesome!

He kept looking at a distant ridge, lifting his muzzle and sniffing the air. It was so cute.

My hubby looks creepy in his ski mask hat thing. The jacket on Chrome's back was to put his head on while he was asleep. I guess hubby got tired of carrying it lol.

Chrome got so bored and impatient. He was yawning and pawing. Dork.
I was too cold to walk around hehe.

Leaning against Chrome to share warmth. :D He's such a good boy.

My gorgeous boy. He's getting so gray!

Did some grazing to pass the time.

Finally moved to the sidewalk in front of the clinic to block the wind lol.
It was so much warmer there.

The vet finally came outside to . . . you know. Some of the pictures below may be disturbing to some people. There are pictures of him asleep and falling down. Those were the only things that really disturbed me, but I think it was more because it was my horse. If it was a different horse that I wasn't attached to curiosity probably would have taken over. With Chrome I was a nervous wreck! The vet was so awesome about answering my questions and my friends were the best at keeping me calm. I stayed by his head during the entire procedure, petting him and talking to him. I'll admit I almost started crying at one point, but my friends kept me laughing. :)

Getting the first sedative.

Getting sleepy. I was keeping my distance in case he fell.

I forget why I was laughing, but I really like this picture.

After the second injection he definitely started getting unsteady. He was all splay legged hehe.

He started to fall the wrong way and the vet had to pull his head (I hate the way the halter pulled up into his eye) to make him go the other way.

This is the most awful picture! He almost rolled all the way over (very slight slope), but the vet was an expert at maneuvering him safely into a good position.

I don't have permission to post his face on the internet so I blurred it out. He put a rope around his leg to hold it out of the way and also pulled his tongue out of his mouth so he wouldn't bite it. From this point on my friend switched to video for the procedure. The vet explained the whole thing as he went along and showed everything to the camera. His confidence helped keep me calm. I stayed by Chrome's head the whole time, petting him. I didn't want to see the procedure while it was being done, but it was interesting watching the video. I was going to post the video, but some of our conversation was inappropriate for the blog and other people are in it that I don't have permission to post on the internet. Oh well. It's probably too gross for most people anyway hehe.

The procedure went quickly and Chrome did well. The vet did an awesome job and was just great for the whole thing. Then we just had to wait while Chrome woke up.

When he finally sat up he ran his tongue right through his own poop pile eww! I moved his head a little and kicked the poop away. I wish I'd had a rake so I could have cleaned it up.

When he rolled up he had his leg in a weird position, so we fixed it to make him for comfortable.

He sat there for probably five minutes before he got up. We were in the process of switching the camera to video so we could get him standing up when he did it lol. I was shocked how quickly he stood up. He was definitely unbalanced, but didn't stagger around like I worried he might. We did get a video of me stuffing his poor dried out tongue back in his mouth. It's hilarious because I didn't realize she was taping it.

I stood with him for a few minutes while he got steadier and then he started mugging for treats haha! Can't keep my boy down for long. I knew he was okay when he did this . . .

. . . beautiful smile. Had to change it to black and white because the color was awful.

I was talking while I hugged him so my expression is weird, but I love this picture.
He was still so out of it lol.

When he seemed steady enough to ride safely in the trailer we went to load him up. He did NOT want to go on. Poor baby. I think it's because he was feeling so unbalanced. He would walk halfway up and then back down the ramp again. He was getting more and more upset, so my husband and one of my friends finally got behind him and pushed him into the trailer. Poor baby. We definitely need more work and practice at loading and hauling.

When we got home he was sweating again, but not too bad. When I turned him out in the pasture he was eager to see his buddies. The little turd donkey started chasing him and acting aggressively (I guess because of the blood? Weak herd member?), so we trapped him out of the round pen and let Chrome rest with Faran for a few hours until the anesthesia wore off.

When I went back out a few hours later to let him out of the round pen he was napping.

I felt bad waking him, but he'd already heard me and it was too late to sneak back inside so I went ahead and let him out.

He walks a little slow, but seems pretty unconcerned with his incision. I forgot how stoic he is.

Not sure what he was doing . . . maybe checking to see if Faran had stolen something from him LOL! Two seconds later Faran told him in no uncertain terms to back off.

Sleepy boy sticking his tongue out hehe.

Their bickering never lasts long. It looks like Chrome was grooming Faran, but he was actually licking him lol. This was the best picture I got darnit.

Gorgeous Faran!

They moved out onto the thirty acres for some grazing.
Zeppelin was leaving him alone, thank goodness.

Dirty (but cute) donkey.

Faran was dirty too hehe.

Anyway the vet said basically to leave him out where he can move around, watch for excessive swelling and walk or longe him daily. He gave him a tetanus and a shot of penicillin (is that common practice now?), so he should be good. He said I don't have to clean it or put anything on it. If it closes up on the outside I'll have to take him back in so the incision can be reopened. Please keep your fingers crossed it doesn't!

He's doing great. He really seems a lot less concerned with the whole thing than I would have thought. He was even . . . uh playing with himself so he must not be in too much pain. Of course it could be that the local anesthetic hasn't worn off yet. We shall see how he feels tomorrow. I hope it's not horribly cold because I'll be out there walking him at least twice tomorrow for thirty minutes. I don't work tomorrow, so maybe more. Anyway I'll keep you all updated!

All Good!!

2011-11-28T12:24:00.001-06:00

We're back and everything went great! Chrome was such a good boy (well except for loading back onto the trailer to come back home, but I don't blame him) and I LOVE this vet. I'll be back in a bit with details, pictures and even video! He let us videotape the whole procedure. :) I'll be back. Thanks guys for you advice and encouragement.

Tomorrow is the day! I'm nervous!

2011-11-27T20:42:00.003-06:00

Tomorrow is Chrome's appointment at the vet to get gelded. I'm so nervous! I think I mentioned on here already that this is my first time having a horse gelded. The horses I grew up with were either mares or already geldings, so I'm new to this whole thing. If anyone has any advice, hints, tips, tricks, after-care instructions, questions I should ask the vet, etc. please share! Just nothing to scare me please. No horror stories lol.

We got the trailer ready today. Checked the tires and wiring, put down bedding, hung a hay net, etc. I don't want to have to deal with any equipment malfunctions hehehe. Then I loaded Chrome to let him eat his supper on the trailer. He paused at the ramp to sniff it and then walked right on. Of course he found his feed immediately so that was his jackpot. Then we closed the ramp and doors so he could eat with it all closed up. His head came up and he was very tense, but he didn't panic and did finish his supper. Then we let the ramp down and he waited for me to ask him to back out, which he did perfectly. So unless he just wakes up on the wrong side of the bed tomorrow he should load fine. I feel like I'm as prepared as I can get, just have to concentrate on keeping the anxiety at bay and we should be fine.

I would really appreciate aftercare instructions though because I've never done this before. My plan so far is to leave him loose in the pasture so he can move around as much as possible. It's going to be cold all week which will help the swelling and should keep him from going for a dip in the pond. As far as cleaning I'm not sure what to do. I've heard a million different things. Cold hosing to keep swelling down and keep the wound open. Walking twice a day for thirty minutes a piece for the same reasons. Some people say use diluted iodine spray or betadine to clean it. Some say leave it alone. I've been told to use Vaseline on his legs to keep them from getting raw from the drainage. Also is he okay out with Faran and Zep? He won't play too hard will he? Do I give anything for pain or swelling or let him hurt so he will take it easy? Anyway thank you so much everyone in advance for any help or advice you can offer. :)

New Video of Chrome's Sire

2011-11-21T09:22:00.001-06:00

They posted a new video of Chrome's sire. Check it out!

New Weights & Going For a Walk (Chrome Wearing Saddle)

2011-11-20T18:04:00.004-06:00

Note: The pictures in this post were taken tonight at dusk so the lighting was awful, so I played around with them in my editing program. :)

Making "googly" eyes at a dragging rope. Silly boy.

One of my followers appydoesdressage (great blog by the way, check it out!) gave me a link to a weight calculator that takes into account different variables such as young horses and draft horses, so it's more accurate than a weight tape. Here is the link http://www.smartpakequine.com/health_and_nutrition/weightcalculator/default.aspx

So I went and got the measurements for Faran and Chrome. Faran's girth measured 82 inches and his length measured 78 inches, so it says he weighs 1589, which sounds a whole lot more accurate than the weight tape which put him at 1300lbs. :) Chrome measured 70 inches for his girth and 68 inches for his length, so it says he weighs 1010lbs. That sounds soooo much better than 890. I had a hard time believing he could possibly be that light at 15.1hh, so I'm glad to see that he probably has made it over 1000lbs. Good thing I dose a little heavy with wormer lol.

Since it warmed up a little today (I love t-shirt weather in November!!) we decided to take the horses for a "walk" around the perimeter of the pasture for a little exercise and bonding time. I decided to saddle Chrome just to make it less boring lol. I figure the practice can't hurt. I think I put it on a little too tight at first because he was reluctant to walk. Once I loosened it he was fine though. :) We had fun. Chrome didn't spook when a rabbit ran right under our feet either. He's such a good boy! My hubby practiced having Faran walk on his left side, because he's so one sided. He did really well. Sorry I didn't get a lot of pictures. It was pitch black by the time we finished our walk.

All saddled and ready to go!! I think I have it too far forward.

Hubby and Faran watching something in the distance. They are so cute.

Hehe this picture makes me hubby look tiny LOL!

I love watching these two interact. :)

They are going to make such a great team.

A picture of Chrome being balky before I loosened his girth.
He never strongly resisted. I didn't have to drag on him or anything.
He's such a good boy.

Handsome, even when washed out by the flash.

I love this shot! He's so gorgeous.

I LOVE this shot too. I wish it had turned out brighter, but still really cool.
He was acting silly over a fire the neighbor had burning. Adorable!

The same picture above, but with the color instead of black and white.
It made it even darker, but the sky looks so cool!

Anyway that's all I have for today. :D

Chrome's Monthly Progress Report

2011-11-19T16:20:00.004-06:00

I didn't get the angle right because I was in a hurry
and I took the picture with him tied up instead of on the road.

Date: 11-19-11
Age: 30 Months
Height: 15.1½hh
Height Gain: Approximately a quarter of an inch. He's now approximately half an inch away from 15.2hh. Do you think he'll make it before he's three?
Weight: The weight tape says 890lbs still. ETA: Using an online calculator he weighs 1010lbs. See next post for more info.
Weight Gain: The weight thing is weird. Of course I've read somewhere that the weight tape isn't completely accurate in young, growing horses. And if he did grow upward maybe he just didn't grow outwards. Of course a weight tape is only as accurate as you make it. I tried measuring in several places and some of them said even less, so I don't know for sure.

Progress: The only progress I've made is making an appointment for gelding him lol. Since my vet didn't call me back for two and a half weeks I finally scheduled it with another vet. It's set for the 28th. Other than that I've been so busy with NaNo that I haven't had time to do much. I did teach him to back up with a light pull of his tail. :)

Goals: Get him gelded and have both of us survive the experience LOL! I don't know why I'm so nervous.

P.S. I know the halter is too loose. I was in a hurry and didn't notice it until I took the picture. Funny what a camera will make you notice lol. I did fix it after the picture.

More Clicker Training (Chrome & Faran)

2011-11-16T09:55:00.003-06:00

I took treats out with the intention of doing a quick review of backing from a light pull on his tail, but did so much more. I realized that the times before when I laid across Chrome's back that I hadn’t clicked him even once for it, so I decided to do that today to associate me being on his back with a good thing. So I led him to the pedestal, lined him up and lay my belly across his back. I clicked for him standing still and when he turned his head to get his treat I almost fell off LOL! I forgot how much turning their head bulges out their barrel.

When I got off balance he started backing up and I couldn’t recover my balance so I slid off. We lined up and tried again. Once again I lost my balance, but my husband grabbed my foot to keep me on long enough to click and treat him for standing still. He did really well though. He never got freaked out, just a little off balance. I’m going to stay off his back for a while. I think he’s proven that my weight isn’t going to be a big deal so no sense in stressing his back anymore than necessary at his age.

After that we worked on backing by his tail. It was hilarious at one point I was standing on the pedestal talking to my husband and Chrome turned his butt to me and started backing up before I even asked him for anything! Too cute! He did great with that. He always loves the brand new things.

After that I worked on head lowering, which he did great. I’m adding a vocal cue “down” to it as well, since it’s something I want him to know really well. Then I tried playing yoyo with him. He would come forward, but didn’t want to back up. I think it’s because I’ve been teaching him to back up toward me by his tail. I’ll try again later when we hadn’t just worked on backing by his tail.

So the last thing I worked on was picking up his front hooves. I would ask him to pick it up, click/treat. Ask him to pick it up, scratches. He would pick it up on his own, scratches but no other reward since I didn’t ask for it. He offers his front legs all the time and I don’t want to discourage it since I had so much trouble a little while ago with asking him to give his hooves. I did that on both sides alternating which reward I used. I’ll put it on a variable reinforcement schedule soon because he has to learn that he still needs to do what I ask even when I don’t have a clicker. So this impromptu session went great!

Oh, almost forgot, at one point I had him shoulder yielding toward me. I completely forgot to use my flat palm cue for moving his body toward me though, duh! I asked him to step away to reposition him because we were stuck by a brush pile and after that he wouldn’t yield toward me again. I think he got confused. I’ll do better with my cues next time.

My husband also worked with Faran. He worked on come and then on lowering his head. Faran did fantastic!! My husband was squeezing his crest lightly just in front of his withers for the cue and Faran was dropping his head all the way to the ground. He's so smart. It's so awesome to see the difference in Faran when he catches on to something and actually understands what he's being asked for. I don't think things have ever been explained to him before.

My husband was excited and forgot to feed at arms length so Faran got very muggy and was lowering his head with it turned toward him, so I suggested he switch sides. As soon as my husband went to Faran's left side his attitude completely changed. He was doing beautiful sidepasses away from my husband trying to keep him from getting close to his left side. The only thing I can think of is that's the side most people mount from so this is more residual damage from that stupid trainer his previous owner took him to. I stood in Faran's way to block sideways movement so he started backing up. When I got by his hip he didn't have anywhere to go and stopped. My husband clicked him for that and they went back to head lowering as if nothing had ever happened. I think he needs to spend some time rewarding Faran for being on his left side! It's funny the holes you find when you least expect it. It's going to take a long time to undo the damage done to Faran by supposed trainers, but it will be worth it in the end to gain his trust. :)

Gelding Chrome!

2011-11-15T21:11:00.002-06:00

Eeek! I finally got a date set. November 28th! I'm so scared. I've waited for two and a half weeks for my regular vet to call me back so I did some asking around and got really good reviews for a different vet that is in a smaller, nearby town, so I scheduled it with him. I met him today because I went with a friend who's horse got an ugly laceration on her muzzle/lip and he is so friendly. I liked him right away. :D I'm still really nervous though. He says he puts them all the way on the ground instead of doing it standing . . . if I chewed fingernails I'd be doing it right now lol.

When To Start A Horse - Two BIG Questions!

2011-11-15T09:32:00.005-06:00

Thank you Frizzle for your comment on my last post. I think I needed that reminder. :)

Have you all read this article? http://www.equinestudies.org/ranger_2008/ranger_piece_2008_pdf1.pdf I have, but it had been a while, so I went back and read it again when she posted it. There was a lot of information in the article that I had forgotten. I knew that most of the growth plates in the legs had closed by 3 and I knew that the growth plates in the back did NOT close until much later, but what I forgot was how important the growth plates in the back are.

I knew when I bought Chrome as a five month old that I was going to have to wait years to ride him. I decided that was okay because I really wanted him. I fell in love with Chrome before I ever met him in person. He's been the best horse I've ever had the pleasure of working (playing) with and I want to do what is best for him. I don't want my impatience to harm him. It's been four years since I've been able to consistently ride horses and that is definitely starting to bother me, especially as now I've been able to ride a friend's horses this past summer. That's just made it even harder lol. I wish there was a place to sign up for riding lessons just so that I could consistently ride every week, but without a horse to practice on I feel that is a little bit like wasting money.

So as much as I want to ride Chrome when he turns three I'm going to try to refrain as much as I can. I'll sit on him on his birthday just because it's something I've been looking forward to for so long and I don't think sitting there for a picture will hurt him, but I'm going to hold off on riding him as much as possible.

So my question is, since a horse's growth plates are mostly closed in his legs at three is it safe then to start longing then? I want to teach Chrome about using his back through longing over cavaletti, etc, but I don't want to hurt him with the circles . . . what do you all think? From what she said in the article I don't think it will damage his legs, but I would really like more opinions before I decide (obviously it would only be about three times a week).

The other question is about exercise. Chrome stayed a little fatter than I like over the summer for a young horse because he had free choice graze on thirty acres and I really hope that hasn't caused any problems. He was by no means obese, but you could not see his ribs. So my question is how much exercise does a two and a half year old need? I know it has to be straight lines at this age and I really need to try the ground driving again (although I think it would be easier to teach longing and then ground driving hence my first question), but how often and how much? He still plays with Led Zeppelin, but I can definitely see him calming down and getting lazier as he gets older. I guess depending on him getting his exercise requirements from playing with the donkey is like expecting a dog to get plenty of exercise just because it has a big backyard. Not reliable. The problem also is that our roads are all asphalt so I've tried to limit how much time he spends on them and he usually only walks on it. So any advice on this?

I won't be doing much this winter simply because I am NOT a winter person, but next spring when he turns three I would like to work on the longing, ground driving, etc. I'm also planning to use clicker training to teach him to use his back at liberty, which is part of the reason we do the Chase the Tiger game because it teaches him to lower his head and raise his back.

Anyway at this point I'm rambling. I really look forward to reading your comments.

I love Chrome!

2011-11-14T17:52:00.003-06:00

Chrome at five months old in 10/09.

I can't believe how much my baby is growing up. It's exactly six months before he turns three years old. :) I can't believe it's been so long already, yet I can't remember my life without him. Today a friend was dropping me off at my house after we spent the day cleaning up her new house and we went out to hang with the horses for a minute. Chrome had wedged himself between the corral panels and the fence because he's weird and likes to squeeze himself in there. I've never seen a less claustrophobic horse in my life lol.

So anyway I climbed up the corral panels beside him and swung my leg over his back, resting it across his back and on top of the fence next to him, with my butt on the corral panel. My weight wasn't on him except for my leg and I just rubbed him all over the head, neck, shoulders and haunches. He was so great. He didn't care at all. I finally moved him out of the corner because I figured if he spooked backwards he would probably pull me off the fence. He was completely relaxed, but there is no sense in pushing it.

I led him (no halter or rope) to the pedestal and used it to hop up onto his back, laying across on my belly with my head on one side and my feet on the other. I've done this probably five or six times in the last two months. He's been fantastic every time, even when I do it while he's eating. Normally he just stands there though. He seemed unbalanced whenever he would try to walk. Today as I lay across his back I reached up and patted him on the butt asking him to walk on and he did. He walked all the way across the round pen to the gate and stopped. He was so perfect!!! He never spooked, hunched up, tried to spin, nothing. He didn't act goosey, scared, upset, angry or unbalanced. He just walked across the round pen like he's been doing it his entire life. :D I love my horse. Of course as soon as we got to the gate I slid off because I don't want my weight on him too much before his growth plates have closed in his legs.

I can't wait until he's three!! I've never worked with a horse that is so sane, calm, laid back and accepting. I just have to remind myself that just because he is smart and accepting I can't push him too fast, too soon mentally, which since I'm being so super careful with the physical part it's probably pretty much impossible. I just don't want to skip any of the basics, no matter how ready he seems to be to move on. Luckily clicker training is all about breaking things down so we should do fine. :) I'll also be wearing my helmet and a body vest (if I can find one that is affordable) because as fantastic as he is he's still a baby and they can be unpredictable. :)

Sunny Day Clicker Training

2011-11-13T15:57:00.002-06:00

Picture taken 4/11.

I decided to go play with Chrome a little since it was almost in the seventies today. I just couldn’t waste such a pretty day, even with being sick lol. I’m so glad I did. We had so much fun!

I only intended to review the stuff he already knows. I started with backing because he hasn’t been listening to it well when he’s distracted. He did really well, but Faran was being nosy so we left the round pen. Unfortunately that put us in the area where the persimmons are falling so he completely ignored me while he searched for dessert. When he didn’t find any he came back lol.

He didn’t really want to listen, but when he realized I wasn't dishing out treats unless he performed the behaviors he started listening again. I think he was just in a lazy mood today because it’s been so cold lately and today was unusually warm. Then I worked on shoulder yields. He did perfect on his right side, which is the side he learned first, but needed refreshing on his left side. I just applied the cue and waited for him to do it, when he did I clicked and gave a treat.

After that we worked on following and whoa (not much because Faran got in the way again). Then we moved to the pedestal and worked on circling his hindquarters around the pedestal. He did really well and only tripped off of it once when he forgot to straight his front legs out before stepping over with his rear legs. It was cute seeing him stand on the pedestal with his front legs crossed hehe.

Then we worked on head lowering (which surprisingly he did perfect!), lateral flexion (which he now only does if I’m standing on the opposite side I’m cueing, because if I cue the side I’m standing on he thinks I’m asking for a shoulder yield since they are in the same spot - that’s how light the cue for shoulder yield is that he confuses it with the tickle lol) and picking up all four feet which he did fantastic on! Brat. Now why can’t he do that all of the time? I’ll just have to repeat them so many times he doesn’t even think about it or if that fails just work on fading the clicker. I don’t really care because we have fun and he’s a really well behaved horse.

After reviewing all of that I decided to work on something new. The first thing that came to mind was teaching him to lead by his mane. I’ve been wanting to teach it because it’s so helpful if you don’t have a halter and need to lead them. My Appaloosa mare I had growing up would lead by her forelock through anything. Even when they escaped from the pasture and were eating grass (front yard was fenced too), she would lead back to the pasture. :D Faran was making things difficult though and Chrome kept lowering his head, so I decided to work on him backing up from a light pull on his tail. I’ve been wanting to teach that because it’s a common method used for asking horses to back off of a trailer.

At first Chrome just stood there and ignored me. He’s used to me messing with his tail to clean it and comb it. I increased the pressure a little and he still ignored me, so I started using a bumping pressure (pull, release, pull, release). Keep in mind this is very gentle pressure. I’m not hurting him or aggravating him to a point where he would want to kick. So when I started doing that he started yielding his hindquarters (probably trying to face me), but I just followed him around and kept the cue consistent.

After his third or fourth time of yielding his hindquarters when he came to a stop he placed his foot behind the other instead of across in front of it. I clicked and treated. When I walked back around and started pulling lightly again he almost immediately stepped one hoof backward. C/T. The next time he tried yielding again and when that didn’t work he stepped backward with both front and rear hooves. :D I got him to do it several more times with two steps backwards, gave him a jackpot and ended the session. I’m so proud of how quickly he picked it up! We’ve never worked on anything like this before. Such a good boy.

Feeling Guilty

2011-11-10T08:30:00.002-06:00

I'm feeling guilty that I'm not spending much time with the horses. I expected this obviously because of NaNo, although the house remodel project was sort of spur of the moment and unexpected, but it doesn't stop me from feeling bad. I guess it doesn't really matter. All of their needs are being met. I just haven't been training or anything. I guess a lot of people take the winter off from riding, so maybe that's all I'm doing lol.

I do have to get Chrome gelded though . . . still waiting on the vet to call me back to schedule that. I really want to get it done now so that by the time May rolls around all of the testosterone will be out of his system, although I really don't think being a stud is going to affect his trainability. Even as a stud he's been the sweetest, most laid back horse I've ever worked with. :D Anyway I guess there was no point to this random post, just thinking out loud.

First Trip Across The Highway

2011-11-07T21:01:00.003-06:00

I was goofing around with Chrome out in the pasture the other day while my husband chatted with our neighbor. We ran around a little and then my husband gave me a leg up so I could lay across his back. He could care less. He was more interested in schmoozing with our neighbor, who is a little intimidated by horses. Then I realized I hadn't been laying across his right side and I don't want him to be one-sided, so I switched. He did well on this side too at first and then got a little antsy and tried to scoot away from me. He didn't really try to dump me or leave or anything. I held on until he stopped moving his feet and then slid off. No big. I think he was just bored and impatient.

Then we decided to take him to the highway for the first time since we will unfortunately have to ride down them at times in the future. I cut across our ditch and he jumped it lazily. Check out this sequence, he is so cute.

Hubby got too far ahead with the camera a little, but they are still adorable.

Check out the fall colors. :D

Chrome loves sniffing the pavement where the neighbor's horses poop on the road while trail riding.
His haunches look tiny because of the angle lol. He's growing withers finally. :)

We're buddies, hanging out.

Approaching the highway he was more intrigued/wary of the neighbor dog than the traffic.

Checking out the highway. I really like this picture. :)

I think he did awesome. Like I said he was more interested in dogs and poop than the highway or traffic. :) Check out the video.

Like the title of the post says, this was his first time crossing a highway so it was his first time seeing the lines painted on it. He stepped over them like he thought they were poles or holes, but he never hesitated. I'm so proud of him. Probably more than is necessary, but my pony growing up was terrified of the lines so to me it's big lol. He's such a good, laid back boy.

Smart Chrome!

2011-11-05T11:48:00.003-05:00

Picture from 6/11.

I'm sitting at work, bored and too frustrated to write in my novel for NaNoWriMo, so I thought I would share a story that happened yesterday. My husband went out to feed the horses and they were nearby under their favorite persimmon tree. As soon as they saw him Faran trotted up for his breakfast, but Chrome stayed standing by the fence and Zeppelin was close to him.

Chrome pricked his ears forward when my husband called him, but he refused to move so hubby walked out there to see what was going on. Apparently one of the smooth pieces of wire that we used to patch a hole in the fence came loose (bet you can't guess how lol) and was circling his rear legs. It didn't have barbs and wasn't tight so it didn't cause any damage, but he was smart enough to know that he shouldn't try to wrestle his way out of it. My husband unwrapped the wire and secured it back to the fence. As soon as Chrome was free he trotted to his bucket to eat his breakfast. Such a smart boy!!

We Got Dapples!

2011-11-02T20:39:00.004-05:00

Guess who has dapples!!

Nope, not my going gray Chrome . . .

My solid black Faran has dapples!! :D Check them out.

My hubby is standing slightly downhill and makes Faran look HUGE! He's 16hh for those who may not know and hubby is almost 5'11".

Can you tell he loves his horse? Another size comparison, my husband has a six foot arm span!

The dapples are also on his haunches. :)

Dirty Boy

2011-10-24T09:42:00.005-05:00

My husband sent me a text yesterday while I was at work telling me that Chrome had rolled in the mud and was nasty! I was glad because I was having a bad day at work and grooming Chrome is so relaxing. So when the neighbor offered to bring the tractor over to move some bales of hay I went out to groom the boy. This is the first bales of hay they've had this year so far because the grass is dying back enough that they need some supplemental forage. Check out how gross he was . . .

Nasty (but gorgeous) Chrome sniffing the hay bale. Can't tell if he was really eager or leery lol.

It looks like he tried to cover every inch lol.

Faran was trying to hide between Chrome and the fence because of evil horse flies.

How do you like the final touches he added of hay to his mane/forelock?

It was even in his mane. It looked like dirt daubers tried to build a nest lol!

So I got busy brushing the boy and my arm was tired when I finished. He looked better though . . .

At one point the flies chased them into the trees. I could hear them galloping back in my direction so I hid behind a tree, set my camera to continuous shoot and hoped for some awesome galloping pictures. I got some of the other two as well, but I'll post them later.

Cantering along, totally oblivious to my presence . . .

. . . finally catches sight of me . . .

. . . and sort of goes sideways, but keep cantering by . . .

. . . not a huge spook, but he's so cute doing it lol.

He looks like he's skipping. :)

And some more random fun shots below . . .

I missed a smudge by his eye.

Scratching his leg with a mouthful of hay lol!

I like this one how the hay is raining down on the camera.

Yummy hay.

That's all for today. I meant to post this yesterday, but my computer was acting up.

Photo Shoot

2011-10-22T19:40:00.004-05:00

I went to my husband's class the other day because they were having a discussion on photography. I enjoyed it and learned a lot. :D He mentioned using a self timer to shoot the moon at night so that the camera doesn't get moved and that reminded me that I've never used my self timer before. I've been wanting to get more pictures of me and Chrome together for a while and my husband wasn't home so I tried it out. Some of them turned out crappy because of the lighting, but Chrome was so cooperative!! He was such a good boy. I was running to the camera and running up to him because I only had ten seconds to set up the shot and he was so great. I'm so proud of him. Let me know what you think.

These first shots I changed to black and white because I had the camera in the sun which caused my skin to be grossly washed out (overexposed). They are still washed out, but it's not as bad now.

I love the set up of this shot (above). I just wish it wasn't so over exposed.

The color version of the one above.

I love my boy. He was so patient. :)

The ones below I was using continuous shoot mode so that I could get shots with his ears forward, so the quality isn't fantastic. Oh well. I still think he's gorgeous.

This one makes him look so big. Remember I'm 5'11".

His expression is from a huge rock I threw over his back to get his attention. He was getting bored so I had to resort to tossing rocks to get his attention. :)

So what do you think? I wish the quality of the photos were better (perfectionist), but I'm so happy to have nice pictures of us together. I've always been so camera shy that I never had pictures of me with my pets so I'm trying to do better.

Chrome's Monthly Progress Report & Two Year Anniversary

2011-10-19T22:02:00.004-05:00

All of the pictures I took turned out like crap lol.
In this one I had to make him back up so he looks like his front legs are camped in.
He doesn't normally stand that way.
He also is looking at the camera, so it's not the best conformation shot. :)

Date: 10-19-11 (Today is also our two year anniversary! I can't believe I've had him for two years already!)
Age: 29 Months
Height: 15.1hh
Height Gain: He's actually 156cm so about 1/3 of an inch over 15.1hh. So he's grown a tiny bit. I really thing he's headed into a pretty major growth spurt.
Weight: The weight tape says 890lbs.
Weight Gain: Which means he's lost a little weight. I'd noticed he looked thinner, but I thought it was from a growth spurt. Since he's actually lost a little I'm going to start feeding him beet pulp again. The summer was very dry so the grass is dying, which is probably why he's lost a little. It's about time to start putting hay out, so I'm glad we were finally able to stock up on some.

Progress: I'm happy to say we have been doing some clicker training and we even worked on some of the competitive trail stuff, so I'm happy. My goal for this month was accomplished. :)

Goals: Okay, I want to get Chrome gelded either at the end of this month or sometime next month . . . scared. This is my first time ever having a horse gelded. We always had mares or already gelded horses. I'm so nervous. We're having it done at the vet clinic so if anything does go wrong at least he's there. I'm nervous about hauling him after being drugged, but we'll wait for it to wear off some. So my goal this month is to get him gelded and work on loading and hauling in the trailer. :) If I have time (and it's not freezing cold) I'd like to work on more of the CTR (competitive trail ride) stuff.

My Future Competitive Trail Horse . . . (long post/video!)

2011-10-18T16:18:00.011-05:00

I LOVE this picture! Sorry about the lines, but this is one of my new favorites. :)
Doesn't he look all gangly and long legged again? I'm hoping it's a growth spurt.

It was a cold, windy day so guess what I decided to do! I chose the obstacle from the Competitive Trail Ride that gave all of the horses the biggest problem and decided to see how Chrome would do with it. :) The white bags with hay that they had to put in front of the saddle while they rode around was the biggest problem. One horse even panicked and bolted away from his owner. Now, guess how Chrome did . . . sorry, you'll have to check out the video and pictures below. ;D

First I brought him up, groomed him and put his surcingle on so I'd have something to tie the bags to. I filled one white trash bag with crumpled packing paper and one with a ton of plastic grocery bags. They don't sound quite like hay, but still an interesting sound. Anyway while he was tied up he was being so impatient and bratty. Probably because of the cold breeze and all of the equipment across the road building a house.

Pawing . . .

. . . playing with his rope . . .

. . . giraffe impression . . .

. . . listening to Faran neigh . . .

. . . playing with his surcingle . . .

. . . giving me adorable looks . . .

. . . more pawing . . .

. . . and he did eventually settle down and stand still so we could go for our walk.

Still feeling frisky he trotted down the ditch . . .

. . . gathered himself for a big jump across the ditch . . .

. . . and gave a dorky, clumsy bounce across the ditch. Silly boy.

I really wish the mailbox hadn't been in the way for this one. He's so gorgeous!
Look how far forward that rear leg is just below the mailbox. :)
The boy can reach under himself.

Then we went for a couple of trots in front of the house so hubby could take pictures. He was getting some great long strides where all four feet would actually leave the ground. Normally he's too lazy to put that much effort in hehe.

Does he have chunky haunches for a two year old? And a non existent gaskin lol.

After trotting we worked on walking through puddles since we've gone all summer without any puddles. He's always been great with them, but normally I'm walking through them too but because I was wearing my sneakers I was skirting the puddle. I think he thought that meant he was supposed to as well. He did go through them though and we even played yoyo, walking forward and backward through the puddle. He tried to bite me once (brat!), but I kept calm, verbally scolded him and just kept on as if it never happened. If he'd made contact with my skin I probably would have smacked him on the shoulder with my hand or bumped him in the teeth with my fist (gently), but he didn't so I let it go. :) Here's the video.

Then we went for a short walk. He did very well listening to me even though he wanted to be a brat around the neighbor's horses. When we came back to the house we worked with the bags. Check out the video. If you don't have a fast internet connection you can look below for snapshots of the video. :)

I look horrible in the video. I dress down on my days off lol. I'm having trouble adjusting to the cold again. So please ignore me. Here are the snapshots.

Introducing the bags.

He stood with his front feet on the pedestal while I tied one bag to his surcingle. Then when I asked him to come forward he actually put his rear hooves on it for I think the second time. :)

This is the first time that he stood with both rear hooves on the pedestal.
He would have stayed there all day if I'd kept clicking lol.

In the video I joked that he was really butt high here haha.
However the pedestal isn't what we were working on so we moved on.

He repeatedly looked back at it. He didn't seem scared, just a tiny bit worried.

He doesn't look stressed to you does he? And he's only two and a half! :D I love him.

He didn't want to trot with them, so I pushed him away and waved my arms at him, so he did trot for me. I wasn't really chasing him, just using my energy to push him away. He stayed calm the whole time. :)

Then I asked him to stand next to the pedestal and I hopped up to lay across his back. This is maybe the fifth time I've done this and I never stay on for even a minute. He did so great!

A hug for all of his hard effort. :)

Standing calmly (watching the other horses eat persimmons without him awww) while I take the bags off.

So I practiced swinging it over his back from the ground and over his head.
When I went to pull the bags back over his head it hung up on his ear!

He followed me like, mom help me! He never panicked or tried to shake his head or anything. He just walked to me and let me take it off of his ear (while laughing hysterically). :D

I'm so happy with my boy. Even though he was bratty toward me in the beginning because of the sudden change in the weather he calmed down and listened well in the end. And he did so well with the trash bags. I knew he'd be good with them, but I expected at least a tiny spook. I mean those adult horses who trail ride up mountains and across huge rivers were completely panicked by those white bags. I'm impressed with my brave boy.

The rest of the competition trail ride pictures . . .

2011-10-17T11:48:00.001-05:00

Okay, here are the rest of the pictures. They aren't great quality because of the time of day, but they're still fun. :)

Getting her number put on. This pony, Shotgun, was twenty years old and absolutely adorable!

This roan is gorgeous! I didn't catch her name, but she's four and inexperienced.

Coaxing Shotgun to cross the bridge, which he did eventually.

Shotgun has an awesome trot!

I was happy to see someone riding bitless . . . although I think mechanical hackamores can be just as harsh in the wrong hands.

Shotgun carrying the bags of leaves. Boy these bags sure caused some drama. There was even a horse who got loose when his owner pushed the matter instead of bowing out of this obstacles. Fortunately the area was fenced so the horse was caught easily.

I like how chunky this horse is, but he looked tense . . . not just in this photo.

Look at his cute little tongue. :)

I think one of the hardest obstacles, at least for the humans, was having to use a stick to pick up a hat . . .

Definitely an obstacle where having a tall horse was a disadvantage.

She hated her bit.

Much happier with her halter on. :)

One of my favorite pictures from the day.

My favorite picture of the day. :) The woman said to hold on tight and when the little girl squeezed with all her might she pretended like she couldn't breathe. So cute!

I tried to get at least one picture of all seventeen entrants and one on each obstacle, but the horses were going on the course together so I couldn't manage to get all of them. We had to stay behind a certain line too and I couldn't see some of the obstacles. A bunch of the pictures didn't turn out because of branches in the way, too bright sun, etc. Oh well. It was a lot of fun and I learned a lot about what we need to work on. Hope you enjoyed the pictures.

More Barn Pictures

2011-10-16T17:45:00.002-05:00

Here are more pictures of the barn from the trail ride yesterday. I would give up my house for this barn!! It was so awesome. I'll have pictures of the horses and obstacles tomorrow. I'm too tired to do it today. Loooooong day at work.

Sorry some of them are blurry. I was in a hurry.

This is the inside view of those doors I showed you yesterday and at the top of this post.

This is the wash stall. Awesome!

The huge tack room.

This is the only picture I got of their covered arena. I completely forgot to go back for more shots.

The pull out feeder. :)

Competitive Trail Ride

2011-10-15T19:45:00.002-05:00

First of all, look at the picture above . . . the barn was AWESOME!!!! It was four times the size of their house lol. So awesome. I'll post more pictures later. I'm exhausted.

My friends and I had a lot of fun even though we didn't get to ride. I was a little disappointed to find that it was basically just an outdoor obstacle course . . . there wasn't much "trail" in this ride lol. It actually worked out well though because the obstacles were all right there so we could see all of them instead of having to drive down the trail to see them. :) I now know what Chrome and I have to work on.

Anyway I'll get the pictures posted soon. I'm just so tired. Five am is too early. :)

Disappointment

2011-10-13T20:27:00.005-05:00

Wow. When will I ever learn to stop trying to make plans. My friend canceled on me for the Competitive Trail Ride. I still get to go watch and ask questions, but I don't get to ride anymore. :(

Horseback Riding Fun

2011-10-12T20:15:00.003-05:00

My friend and I went riding for two and a half hours last Sunday and we had so much fun!! We went to a friend's house to ride out in their cow pasture because they have tons of land with lots of different, fun terrain. The cute little donkey jack above followed us everywhere!

He was so cute, although a bit of a brat. He kept walking up behind the horses, sniffing/braying loudly and biting their haunches. We had to keep swinging our arms at him to get him away from us. Eventually they all got used to each other. :)

He eventually went back to his herd and we continued our ride.

The creek was almost totally dry. You can sort of see how high the banks are in this picture and the water is normally that high. It's been a dry summer. Check out the cool tree roots!

We stopped at one of the tiny little water puddles for a drink.

A view looking off a hill at their land. Very nice barn and house. Wish I could live there. :)

The barn has a full apartment in the top with plumbing and electric!!

Their awesome house!

I was riding my friend's horse Tony.

I like this picture. Considering I'm in a Western saddle, haven't had dressage lessons in six years and have only ridden five or six times in the last four years I think my position is pretty good. I just need to turn my toe more forward to put my inner thigh in against the saddles so I can reach down through my leg and heels, plus I need to support my core more to raise my ribcage and straighten my shoulders. :) This was also about one and a half hours into the ride too so I was a little tired. Please don't gripe at me about the lack of a helmet and heels. I didn't have any of my gear with me and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to ride. Sorry!

The exciting news is that this Saturday my friend and I are going to our first competitive trail ride!! We're just going for fun, not competing, because her horses aren't trained in it and this is our first time. We're just going to see what it's like, what we need to work on and to have fun. Competitive Trail Riding is what I hope to someday do with Chrome. We're so excited!

P.S. I'm not talking about arena trail classes. This is a competitive trail ride, such as with ACTHA (although I'm not sure which one this one is affiliated with).