My mare, Pepper, waxed yesterday so I'm jumping with excitement waiting for her to have her foal. This is my only foal this year and my first by Smarty since Blaze in 2007! This foal will be a full sibling to my favorite, Smart Little Cayenne, so there's a lot of added excitement here! Pepper is only at 11 months and 1 day now so I wasn't expecting her to foal until after the Pat Wyse clinic, towards the end of the month. So much for planning on my part! She may hold on until then as she has waxed for weeks before without foaling. I'm probably leaving early Saturday to haul down to the Supreme Cowboy Race in Nampa, ID, returning Sunday night/Monday morning, leaving for the clinic on Wednesday, and not coming home until that Sunday night. That's a lot of being gone with a mare ready to foal. I plan to put her in a spot where my husband can see her from the house so it will be easy for him to keep an eye on her. I'm going to tempt her shortly and leave to go ride at the local outdoor arena for a couple hours. Hopefully that will motivate her to sneak a foal in!
I rode Cayenne and Smarty up on the hill across from my Dad's yesterday. It was nice to get out and the horses loved the long runs on the logging roads. Smarty was like the energizer bunny. I rated him back to a medium gallop for some corners, rutted road, big puddles and the like but other than that, he poured on the speed. I should say, "His legs went really fast!" He hardly broke a sweat and we went probably 1 1/2 - 2 miles uphill at a good clip! I haven't hardly ridden him so I don't know how he can be in that good of shape. He wasn't done when we reached the top but I had to get back and go to Spokane so didn't have all day to run. Plus I didn't want to kill him even though it was self-inflicted!
I'm getting the trailer and horses ready to head for the Cowboy Race. It'll be a pretty good haul at about 9-11 hours. I had wanted to leave Friday in case I had any trouble but unless Pepper pops, I'll hang out as long as I can. The weather is beautiful and supposed to hold for the rest of the week. That means I can get Smarty and Cayenne washed without them freezing. The race starts at 10:30 Sunday morning and the results are supposed to be announced at 4:30 that evening. That's a long time to hang out with a drive ahead. Hopefully I will know or find out if I placed in the top 3 and if not, head out as soon as possible. Of course, I want to be in that top 3 though! The Expo looks like it has a good lineup of clinicians, demos, etc. It'll be fun to peruse and watch some of the big boys. I'm excited!
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Friday, April 2, 2010
Opportunity in Disguise
Blaze's wound is healing very well. He quickly learned to let me hot pack it AND continually kick a pinecone for my ball-crazy dog, Ziva. As much as I miss riding Blaze, I now have the opportunity to "save" him for the Trainer's Challenge at the Horsin' Around Expo in July. We can have up to 40 rides so I can just keep him laid off for the spring. I wasn't going to use him because I wanted to have many more rides on him than that by the time summer rolled around. He's a good candidate and will be a good example of Smarty babies.
I've been keeping up on riding Cayenne. I will be sending in my entry forms for the Supreme Cowboy Race in Nampa, Idaho on April 18th. I plan to compete on Smarty and Cayenne. It may be a bit much for her level but I'm confident it'll at least be good experience. She has more riding than Smarty did when I took him to the Craig Cameron Extreme Cowboy Race! He had a scattered 120 days or so and very little arena work and we tied for 11th out of 36. The building blocks I've been working on with Cayenne's spin are starting to pay off. I've not asked her to really spin yet but am speeding up her turnaround. She stays correct, is very soft and supple, and doesn't fall apart when I push her. I really hope that Pat Wyse will be happy with the progress I've made on her when we go to the clinic in Sandpoint in a few weeks! We'll go from the Cowboy Race to the clinic with only three days in between. She'll be tired by the time that whole week is over!
I've been keeping up on riding Cayenne. I will be sending in my entry forms for the Supreme Cowboy Race in Nampa, Idaho on April 18th. I plan to compete on Smarty and Cayenne. It may be a bit much for her level but I'm confident it'll at least be good experience. She has more riding than Smarty did when I took him to the Craig Cameron Extreme Cowboy Race! He had a scattered 120 days or so and very little arena work and we tied for 11th out of 36. The building blocks I've been working on with Cayenne's spin are starting to pay off. I've not asked her to really spin yet but am speeding up her turnaround. She stays correct, is very soft and supple, and doesn't fall apart when I push her. I really hope that Pat Wyse will be happy with the progress I've made on her when we go to the clinic in Sandpoint in a few weeks! We'll go from the Cowboy Race to the clinic with only three days in between. She'll be tired by the time that whole week is over!
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Ouch!
Pictures of Blaze's wound from rolling down a hill onto a rock on Tuesday morning! He loves to roll on steep ground and slide down headfirst while wriggling and flipping back and forth! It's quite a sight that I've meant to video. Maybe this wound will cure him of that fun activity though!
I feel fortunate that I saw the injury a very short time after he did it and got him to a good vet. Dr. Richardson in Colville sedated Blaze and pulled the flap back to reveal a deep puncture wound! After flushing and suturing the inner part, he laid the flap back and sewed it all up. He said it should heal up just fine. Blaze is happy and enjoying his stall and the accompanying attention. It's been two days since the injury and the site looks as good as in the "after" picture.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Extreme Trail, Roping, "Real" Trail...
I went back to Shannon's for another Extreme Trail practice. The emphasis was on swinging a rope, roping a dummy or bale, and dragging a log. Tammy went this time and her son and his girlfriend met us there so we brought a full trailer load. It was more productive than the last time because this time, everyone's horses were pretty well schooled, not necessarily on trail obstacles, but on general handling. Cayenne and I finally conquered the teeter totter bridge to the point where she'd just stand on it after it "tottered." It was shorter one than others we've worked on and not as scary.
I practiced roping quite a bit. Cayenne was pretty content to stand and let me rope the bale over and over. I also drug the log and a blue barrel. She was fine with everything. Since everyone got done working the obstacles so soon, we went for a nice trail ride up in the hills. There was a lot of climbing so it was a great workout. The prancy dancy horses weren't prancing anymore! I made Cayenne follow most of the time so she doesn't get locked in the mindset that she's the leader all the time. She was a little antsy at times, especially after she got her second wind, but did fine.
It was fun taking just one horse but I get lots more accomplished when I take a few. The Cowgirl Co-Op should be opening back up in a few weeks so the practice will be held there.
I practiced roping quite a bit. Cayenne was pretty content to stand and let me rope the bale over and over. I also drug the log and a blue barrel. She was fine with everything. Since everyone got done working the obstacles so soon, we went for a nice trail ride up in the hills. There was a lot of climbing so it was a great workout. The prancy dancy horses weren't prancing anymore! I made Cayenne follow most of the time so she doesn't get locked in the mindset that she's the leader all the time. She was a little antsy at times, especially after she got her second wind, but did fine.
It was fun taking just one horse but I get lots more accomplished when I take a few. The Cowgirl Co-Op should be opening back up in a few weeks so the practice will be held there.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Brief Update on Cayenne & Blaze
My dad put new shoes on Little Cayenne yesterday. I had him put the small sliders on her to see how she works in them. She slides pretty well in regular shoes so I think mini sliders will be fun! I'd like to find out whether I can avoid super sliders. I want to show her in reining but my main focus is extreme trail. I don't want her footing to be in question while training for or competing in trail. From experience, I know regular shoes are not the best on some of the large rock outcroppings in the hills. The little sliders were worse, of course. I avoid the large, flat rocks when I can but I don't want to hinder my riding too much just so I can get a big slide in the arena! We'll see how it goes!
I've been riding Blaze sporadically. I took him for one ride alone up the hill from Dad's. Walk, trot and canter, down the hill under the powerline, through the brush, etc was all fine with him. He got a little humpy with me a couple times yesterday but I hadn't worked him in over a week. The "humpy" was more in his neck and pinched ears, so it was more of a thought than an action. I just pulled his head around to discourage him and squeezed him back out into a trot. He was feeling pretty spicy yesterday, from the time I brought him in, so I knew I was in for more of a challenge. I'm hoping to get shoes on him in a couple weeks and get him worked enough to take to the Pat Wyse clinic at the end of April. I have outside horses starting to come in so we'll see how much time I end up with for my own.
** Update on Blaze: I figured out why he was humpy the next day when I was brushing him. His hair was roughed up on either side of his withers. I double checked the fit of his saddle and he has grown too wide, making it perch up too high and hurt him. Simple fix! I had an excellent ride on him with the correct fitting saddle!
I've been riding Blaze sporadically. I took him for one ride alone up the hill from Dad's. Walk, trot and canter, down the hill under the powerline, through the brush, etc was all fine with him. He got a little humpy with me a couple times yesterday but I hadn't worked him in over a week. The "humpy" was more in his neck and pinched ears, so it was more of a thought than an action. I just pulled his head around to discourage him and squeezed him back out into a trot. He was feeling pretty spicy yesterday, from the time I brought him in, so I knew I was in for more of a challenge. I'm hoping to get shoes on him in a couple weeks and get him worked enough to take to the Pat Wyse clinic at the end of April. I have outside horses starting to come in so we'll see how much time I end up with for my own.
** Update on Blaze: I figured out why he was humpy the next day when I was brushing him. His hair was roughed up on either side of his withers. I double checked the fit of his saddle and he has grown too wide, making it perch up too high and hurt him. Simple fix! I had an excellent ride on him with the correct fitting saddle!
Friday, February 12, 2010
Blazin' Trails
I had a nice ride up the hill on Blaze on Wednesday. I hauled horses to my dad's and he rode with me when I took Blaze up. We walked, trotted and galloped out up the logging roads. It was Blaze's first time loping under saddle and he didn't bobble at all, just a little squeeze at a trot and off we went into a nice little smooth lope. I had Blaze lead sometimes and follow other times in all gaits and he had a good time. He walked out nice and seemed very happy to be up there. We took the "williwaw" trail, going up a bank, through brush, over logs, etc. Blaze has grown up in varied terrain so that didn't phase him. It made me feel good that he was so relaxed yet perky about everything. Our ice is pretty much gone so I should be able to put him to work a bit more seriously now!
I also took Cayenne and Smarty up on the hill. I climbed the ridge line on both and did lots of galloping. I had planned to go easy on Smarty since he's not in any sort of shape, other than round, but he had other ideas. I relented and let him charge up the hills hell-bent-for-leather until we reached the top. He was ready to keep going but I pulled him up made him walk a while. He has never poured on the speed for that long. He must be feeling really good after seeing the equine dentist last week! He was jiggy, which has never happened before either, so once I got him to walk calmly, I cued him into a long trot. We trotted for another ways and then picked up a lope again. I let him have his head a bit and he was tearing along the curvy logging road like a madman! I slowed him up before the sharper corners in case there were deer or elk in the road but otherwise, I let him run. After a few minutes, I slowed him up again and made him walk the half hour or so back to the trailer. He was still full of energy, although flat footed, and seemed extremely happy with himself and the fact that he'd gotten to stretch out. If he had longer legs, I might be able to say he was fast but his little legs were just going a million miles an hour!
The renewed happiness of my horses I had dental work done on makes me feel it was well worth it. I'm already seeing better lateral work and comfort. Having Smarty so free and "full of it" is different but good. Other than the habit of keeping his nose tipped slightly to the right this winter, I didn't realize that seemingly minor mouth issues were hindering my riding and training so much. Even 2% better is a huge difference in the long run. None of them had major issues except Smarty had a "wave" probably from a cap that stayed on too long, which resulted in a high tooth on the bottom left side of his molars. With his stud jowls pushing in, the edge on the high tooth was wearing on the inside of his cheek, resulting in the head tipping I started getting. I guess I'll be paying the equine dentist to work on all of my horses annually from here on out!
I also took Cayenne and Smarty up on the hill. I climbed the ridge line on both and did lots of galloping. I had planned to go easy on Smarty since he's not in any sort of shape, other than round, but he had other ideas. I relented and let him charge up the hills hell-bent-for-leather until we reached the top. He was ready to keep going but I pulled him up made him walk a while. He has never poured on the speed for that long. He must be feeling really good after seeing the equine dentist last week! He was jiggy, which has never happened before either, so once I got him to walk calmly, I cued him into a long trot. We trotted for another ways and then picked up a lope again. I let him have his head a bit and he was tearing along the curvy logging road like a madman! I slowed him up before the sharper corners in case there were deer or elk in the road but otherwise, I let him run. After a few minutes, I slowed him up again and made him walk the half hour or so back to the trailer. He was still full of energy, although flat footed, and seemed extremely happy with himself and the fact that he'd gotten to stretch out. If he had longer legs, I might be able to say he was fast but his little legs were just going a million miles an hour!
The renewed happiness of my horses I had dental work done on makes me feel it was well worth it. I'm already seeing better lateral work and comfort. Having Smarty so free and "full of it" is different but good. Other than the habit of keeping his nose tipped slightly to the right this winter, I didn't realize that seemingly minor mouth issues were hindering my riding and training so much. Even 2% better is a huge difference in the long run. None of them had major issues except Smarty had a "wave" probably from a cap that stayed on too long, which resulted in a high tooth on the bottom left side of his molars. With his stud jowls pushing in, the edge on the high tooth was wearing on the inside of his cheek, resulting in the head tipping I started getting. I guess I'll be paying the equine dentist to work on all of my horses annually from here on out!
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Extreme Trail Practice Day at Shannon's
I hauled Smarty, Cayenne, and Blaze to my friend, Shannon's, to practice on her indoor extreme trail course. There were about 8 riders total so it wasn't too crowded but you definitely couldn't lope around in the arena.
I worked Cayenne first and she was pretty nervous just getting to the arena. There was the usual array of farm junk laying around as well as dogs standing on the top of a pickup. She's not fond of dogs, especially when they're the same height as she! I didn't pressure her much once we got into the arena. I just let her familiarize herself with it. It was a coverall so white fabric sides with a variety of "things" stacked along the edge. There were also cages and pens with ducks, peacocks and goats. Once I walked her around a bit, I took a turn on each of the obstacles. There was a flat bridge, a taller curved bridge, a blue tarp, sacks of cans to drag, a "carwash," and a variety of other obstacles. Many of the other horses were resistant to do the obstacles at first so it was interesting to see the methods used to convince them there were no monsters under the bridges, etc. After doing the obstacles several times each and just riding around, which took a couple hours, I traded Cayenne out for Smarty. He's never actually practiced on most of the obstacles he's seen on the extreme trail courses including a simple carwash. He's just a nice guy who likes to do whatever silly thing I ask! He quietly completed the course without a hitch and I took him back to the trailer.
We broke for a hot and delicious lunch of home-made chili and corn bread. Yum! It was nice to drink a cup of coffee and visit with some of the riders. There was a gentleman riding a beautiful bay arab mare. He tied her to the arena wall framework and she entertained us with her prissy attitude. She danced and pranced and nickered in abandonment, successfully knocking her bridle on the ground and trampling it twice. We watched as her owner, a lady, went to comfort her. The mare thought the bowl of chili in her owner's hand was for her and took a quick dip. The expression on her face was priceless!
Blaze had been saddled and IN the trailer for his own protection. He is currently determined that he must be where Cayenne is and will have a mini-tantrum if left without her. Although he must "deal" with it at home, I didn't want him pawing on the side of my aluminum trailer or injuring himself while alone outside. After saddling him when I got there, I put him in the trailer with the window open. Smarty was tied outside to "babysit" his unruly son! All went well.
After lunch, I led Blaze to the arena. I had brought him for the experience and figured he would be too excited to be safe to even get on. I hoped to be able to lead him in the arena and show him the obstacles, at least from a distance! He surprised me by being a very good boy. He was nervous, of course, but didn't overreact to the "normal" things like the plastic bag or the feed sack on a stick being worked over him. I moved on to another familiar, the blue tarp. He was nice and calm. He was very curious about all of the other horses in close quarters. He easily maneuvered over both bridges and looked at the ducks and the goats. The car wash was our nemesis the only other time I've taken him to an extreme trail course. This time, he was calm and I was able to take him through several times with the tarp strips tied back. After that confidence builder, I let down first one half and then the second half of the strips (and pool noodles) so he could go through them. I placed him in front of them and then just let him think. He had a concentrated look on his face as he slowly poked his head through and then slowly walked all the way through as if wishing he could fit his whole body within the 3" path he chose without having the strips touch him.
Although I hadn't planned on riding Blaze there, I went back to the trailer for my helmet, did a little more groundwork in the arena, and mounted up. I had all of the horses' teeth worked on by a horse dentist yesterday and although he said I could ride today, I just had Blaze in a rope halter. He's my sensitive horse and if anyone needed a break, it was him. I steered him around a bit and then asked him to do some various obstacles like the bridges. The arena was getting a bit packed by then with some horses skittering around in fear of the car wash so I chose to not try to take him through it while mounted. If we had had the area to ourselves, I would have, but I was having trouble enough maneuvering him between swinging butts! I didn't want him getting ran into or kicked by another horse. He remained relaxed although I do think his mouth was hurting some as he really didn't want to give his head. I took him back to the trailer and unsaddled after a short but positive ride. I was impressed with his accepting attitude. I thought it unlikely he would make a good extreme trail horse because of his "hot" side but he may do great!
I resaddled Cayenne once I put Blaze up and went for a group trail ride with everyone. It was mostly road riding with a jaunt back and forth across a creek and up a hill through some trees. Cay did ok but really wants to lead the pack. She relaxed when I let her up front and was later able to have a better time of it in the middle of the pack. As I have known prior, her main problem is her hyper attitude. She wants to go, go, go! Sometimes I need her to stop and wait for me to do something. She's very competitive natured and fun, but needs more practice reining in some of that type A personality!
I'm glad I went to Shannon's. It was a productive day and the sun even came out for our group ride :)
I worked Cayenne first and she was pretty nervous just getting to the arena. There was the usual array of farm junk laying around as well as dogs standing on the top of a pickup. She's not fond of dogs, especially when they're the same height as she! I didn't pressure her much once we got into the arena. I just let her familiarize herself with it. It was a coverall so white fabric sides with a variety of "things" stacked along the edge. There were also cages and pens with ducks, peacocks and goats. Once I walked her around a bit, I took a turn on each of the obstacles. There was a flat bridge, a taller curved bridge, a blue tarp, sacks of cans to drag, a "carwash," and a variety of other obstacles. Many of the other horses were resistant to do the obstacles at first so it was interesting to see the methods used to convince them there were no monsters under the bridges, etc. After doing the obstacles several times each and just riding around, which took a couple hours, I traded Cayenne out for Smarty. He's never actually practiced on most of the obstacles he's seen on the extreme trail courses including a simple carwash. He's just a nice guy who likes to do whatever silly thing I ask! He quietly completed the course without a hitch and I took him back to the trailer.
We broke for a hot and delicious lunch of home-made chili and corn bread. Yum! It was nice to drink a cup of coffee and visit with some of the riders. There was a gentleman riding a beautiful bay arab mare. He tied her to the arena wall framework and she entertained us with her prissy attitude. She danced and pranced and nickered in abandonment, successfully knocking her bridle on the ground and trampling it twice. We watched as her owner, a lady, went to comfort her. The mare thought the bowl of chili in her owner's hand was for her and took a quick dip. The expression on her face was priceless!
Blaze had been saddled and IN the trailer for his own protection. He is currently determined that he must be where Cayenne is and will have a mini-tantrum if left without her. Although he must "deal" with it at home, I didn't want him pawing on the side of my aluminum trailer or injuring himself while alone outside. After saddling him when I got there, I put him in the trailer with the window open. Smarty was tied outside to "babysit" his unruly son! All went well.
After lunch, I led Blaze to the arena. I had brought him for the experience and figured he would be too excited to be safe to even get on. I hoped to be able to lead him in the arena and show him the obstacles, at least from a distance! He surprised me by being a very good boy. He was nervous, of course, but didn't overreact to the "normal" things like the plastic bag or the feed sack on a stick being worked over him. I moved on to another familiar, the blue tarp. He was nice and calm. He was very curious about all of the other horses in close quarters. He easily maneuvered over both bridges and looked at the ducks and the goats. The car wash was our nemesis the only other time I've taken him to an extreme trail course. This time, he was calm and I was able to take him through several times with the tarp strips tied back. After that confidence builder, I let down first one half and then the second half of the strips (and pool noodles) so he could go through them. I placed him in front of them and then just let him think. He had a concentrated look on his face as he slowly poked his head through and then slowly walked all the way through as if wishing he could fit his whole body within the 3" path he chose without having the strips touch him.
Although I hadn't planned on riding Blaze there, I went back to the trailer for my helmet, did a little more groundwork in the arena, and mounted up. I had all of the horses' teeth worked on by a horse dentist yesterday and although he said I could ride today, I just had Blaze in a rope halter. He's my sensitive horse and if anyone needed a break, it was him. I steered him around a bit and then asked him to do some various obstacles like the bridges. The arena was getting a bit packed by then with some horses skittering around in fear of the car wash so I chose to not try to take him through it while mounted. If we had had the area to ourselves, I would have, but I was having trouble enough maneuvering him between swinging butts! I didn't want him getting ran into or kicked by another horse. He remained relaxed although I do think his mouth was hurting some as he really didn't want to give his head. I took him back to the trailer and unsaddled after a short but positive ride. I was impressed with his accepting attitude. I thought it unlikely he would make a good extreme trail horse because of his "hot" side but he may do great!
I resaddled Cayenne once I put Blaze up and went for a group trail ride with everyone. It was mostly road riding with a jaunt back and forth across a creek and up a hill through some trees. Cay did ok but really wants to lead the pack. She relaxed when I let her up front and was later able to have a better time of it in the middle of the pack. As I have known prior, her main problem is her hyper attitude. She wants to go, go, go! Sometimes I need her to stop and wait for me to do something. She's very competitive natured and fun, but needs more practice reining in some of that type A personality!
I'm glad I went to Shannon's. It was a productive day and the sun even came out for our group ride :)
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