Super Pony

The pony has been going super well this winter. The more I work with him using the stuff we learned in the clinic, the happier and more forward he is. With his happiness, he is way better at both communicating to me when he can't do the thing but also doing whatever he can to do the thing. 

Could not believe that this is what was under me

For example, the other day he could not figure out how to pick up the right lead. I think his right shoulder is the fucked up one and the right side of his neck is the fucked up side. He really struggles to use his right pectoral to stand himself up on the left side of his body. Because of that weakness, every time I asked him to go more forward in trot, or especially to pick up the canter, he'd twist himself a bit. It took me a bit to be able to feel the exact nature of the twist, but I've got it now (if you're curious, it's a twist to the right with his shoulders and to the left with his haunches as they swing right to try to catch his right shoulder, there must be a zing in his back + his right shoulder crushing his neck). 

In the past, I would have pushed him and we would have had a giant fight as he exploded due to the nerve pain. But now that I can feel the twist, I can stop him from continuing to try. I put him back to a posture with good spinal integrity and then I ask again. And he twists again. I kept putting him back until he tried to pick up canter in that posture, good pony! He didn't get it though. It was pretty interesting, he kept trying different leg combinations. He did eventually get it, but it took some time. And then he felt really good in the canter! He twisted once in canter, but I caught it and helped him get himself organized again. So, no explosions, and we haven't had them in a long time. 

I kept thinking about how many horses have twists like this and are labeled lazy or ornery. How many times I've had these horses in my life and gotten after them for being disrespectful. Just like I was taught, just like most of us were taught. I dunno, just makes you think. I'm sure I'll have a lot to say eventually, but I'm enjoying just exploring this new way of riding without having to analyze all the horses I've ever ridden, the trainers I've ever ridden with, and the theory I've ever learned. My brain is already feeling like too much is in there, I don't need to look back on the past right now. 

He's such a cute little marshmallow

Speaking of the now, the pony's trot is actually becoming quite something. While we are still building strength in canter, we seem to have hit a good groove in the trot work. 

My primary goal in walk and trot has been to get him forward enough where I can organize the energy vs always feeling like I have to generate it. Second only to that is the goal to get him reaching for contact. I think I've said in the past that the pony has a tendency to yield to contact instead of reaching for it. If you're curious, I've tried different bits, but he likes his myler best, so we are sticking to that. I think it's a training thing vs an equipment thing. Or maybe a mechanism he learned to protect his neck. 

I've been playing with the connection in walk a lot and that's been helping the trot quite a bit. It all came to a head in a couple rides ago where he went to push over the ground, something I've been letting him do because he has fun with it (and the pony was not a pony who seemed to have fun with anything when I started riding him). This time, I engaged my lats and encouraged him to recycle the energy a tiny bit. The trot that came out of it was SO COOL! He was so much more engaged. 

After that, he seemed stoked to do the fancy engaged trot. He kept picking up trot and I went sitting and he got super fancy. What a good pony! He seemed to enjoy it too. Just reminds me that dressage should feel playful to the horses, they should want to do the thing. If they don't, I think I'll be operating under the assumption that they can't rather than that they won't from now on. Given that the grumpiest little grumps is now so thrilled to give me a trot well above his paygrade. 

I'm so impressed!

I think I'm going to take him in a clinic in mid January. Kate is flying the remote trainer I rode with over the summer out to her barn. I don't want to ride TC with anyone right now, half because I'm being really protective over him and the work we are doing, half because I think I might end up using my new knowledge gained from the Land Safe clinic if I don't have control over what we are doing. Definitely had to hop off of him over the weekend to let him gallop and gallop and gallop because he was throwing me into the air and catching me like I was a rag doll. Thanks bro. 

The plan after that will be to continue on the dressage/rebuilding train until he's solidly walk/trot/canter in the new posture. Then I'll be taking him to Kate's to start jumping him again. I'd *love* for him to be my little jumping horse for this year (no one will replace Flounder but I do like to practice jumping outside of lessons). He did jump 2'6-2'9 when we got him and has competed at BN before. But if he's going to buck after fences on a semi-regular basis, I'm out. First, it hurts my back. Second, I've been surprisingly bold about my jumping excursions lately and don't want to set myself back like crazy. The worst thing Flounder does after fences is try to take me to the gate like I'm a small child. I don't mind my ego being bruised as much as I mind my body being bruised I guess, lol! 

Such a fancy little thing

Either way, I'll still keep riding the pony! He's great practice for having two horses and I'm having fun learning more about the new way of doing things by applying it to two very different horses. Plus... I mean, I know he's almost 17 and has neck arthritis, but who knows what he can do? With this work I really feel like the sky is the limit for any horse. It's wild. And yes, I am hyper aware that I've gone off the deep end and I'm trying really hard not to be weird and preachy about it.