Get Back,Honky Cat!

Tue Mar 22, 2005

Now that the weather's finally warming up (mid-30's today!), I want to get out to the barn on weeknights again, which is what I managed to do tonight. It was pretty busy, and my farrier was riding and giving loud (and helpful) advice to one of the teenage girls (a new boarder) and her horse...he's a pretty good unofficial trainer, he should produce his own set of videos, LOL...lots of common sense, none of that "joining up" and "whispering" junk, just good ole' horse sense!

But he was telling her how to get her horse to back up...of course I was listening...and his method made some sort of sense. Now the way I'd been TRYING to get Quzqo to back up since last summer was patterned after Chris Cox's method on RFD-TV...some sort of breathing mumbo-jumbo and getting your horse to flex and round and of course HIS horse backed up like its forelock was on fire. Quzqo would just brace his neck and IF I got him to shift his weight backwards (w/o any hoof movement), I was thrilled.

But my farrier's method made such sense...to move the horse's feet one hoof at a time...so if you want to move the left hind, you pull back on the rein and light pressure by the girth on the right side...and then move the right hind, pull the rein back and pressure on the left side, etc etc. Sooooo....I tried that....and DAMN if that horse didn't take entire STEPS backwards!!! Quickly and softly...like he "understood" what I wanted!!! No tugging match, no bracing, no gaping mouth trying to evade, no flinging the head! No goofy breathing and buttock-squeezing and Lord knows what else!

Pretty cool I say!!

Quzqo was pretty distracted otherwise tonight, I think he needed lunging but the place was too crowded for that. No matter, I was content just to admire his beeyoootiful face and feed him peppermints, he earned them!

1-1/2 weeks until the clinic at the barn, I figure since I signed up to ride in it, I'd better get more saddle time in between then and now so I don't embarass myself TOO much!!