Pigpen Learns To Canter And Tries New Things

So, I haven’t been ignoring my horse I’ve just been ignoring his blog.

Despite some family issues and things going on, I’ve been consistently working with him 3-5 days a week and we continue to have little successes every time we’re out.

Ace and I have had two major successes, though, in the last week.

1. he’s shedding like a mad-man
2. we’ve officially started canter work

Just Call Me Pigpen

Ace started shedding about a week and a half ago, and I’ve been referring to him as Pigpen (from Peanuts) ever since. I feel like Pigpen when I brush him. You know, the dust and hair that floats around us in this little circulating cloud. I have managed to keep my mouth closed so I haven’t eaten much of it so far.

Ace looks pretty motley right now mid-shed. It’s like I have two different horses; the summer Ace and the winter Ace. His winter coat is long, shaggy, course and a light red bay. His summer coat is soft and sleek and very dark brown with no hint of red. Right now, he’s somewhere inbetween the two. His neck, back, and croup are shedding out well, but he still looks like a yak under his belly and down his jaw. It’s very rewarding to go at him with the shedding blade and take off tons of hair. I’m glad he’s shedding, but I’ll be glad when it’s done and all we have left is summer coat!

Our Biggest Accomplishment So Far

Two months ago, Ace wouldn’t take a step forward. Yesterday, he picked up a canter four times when asked … and maintained it.

We continue to focus on forward and straight. I’m not having any balking issues anymore, but Ace is still a bit on the lazy side. It takes lots of reminders for me to keep him moving with energy. I think a lot of that is just that we’re both getting back into shape. His transitions are responsive and light, though.

Ace is slowly starting to better understand how to respond to my legs when I use them for straightness and bend. He’s very light on the bit, so it takes hardly any hands to ask for flexion, but he has a habit of turning his head and neck too far while running me into the wall or overbending. I’ve been working hard on using just leg for turning and only using my reins to keep his head straight. I’m getting much better control of his shoulders now and he’s starting to get it.

About a week or so ago, I was just playing around and asking Ace to pick up the tempo in the trot. He was feeling good, and was responding very well. So I figured it would be a good time to see if he’d be willing to give me a canter. It took a few tries for him to figure out what I wanted, but he did it! I’d get the trot to canter transition and then just go a few strides. We only did it 2-3 times, but it was a good start.

After that, I worked him on the lunge a bit to practice canter transitions without me on his back. He did them beautifully. He also responds to voice commands like a star these days. I don’t need to raise the whip or anything; just one “tee-rot” or “cannnnteerr” and off he goes. And goes. He was actually acting quite thoroughbredy and energetic the other day. I was quite proud of him for it, too.

Yesterday I officially started working on cantering under saddle. At first it took a couple tries to get the canter transition, as he wasn’t completely sure what I was asking. After a few successes, and keeping him going a time or two around the ring, I could tell it was starting to click. I have to be careful to keep a deep seat and make sure that he’s balanced just right if we’re going to be successful. It’s a little rough right now because he’s just learning, we could both use better conditioning, and he’s a big horse in a narrow arena. In the process I’ve also learned that my horse has an incredibly comfortable canter.

(Sidenote: learning to ask for a canter transition was one of the biggest struggles of my early riding career. Rephrase: it was THE biggest. I had such a hard time learning how to do it, and getting the proper feel. But now it’s one of the things I’m best at, probably because I had to work so hard for it. It’s exciting to see how far I’ve come …. from the girl who couldn’t do it on an experienced horse to one who is teaching a green horse to do it.)

New Experiences

After I wore both of us working on canter transitions, I took us outside to ride around the pasture and get out of the confines of the ring. Ace, like the star he’s been lately, let me open the arena gate from his back. He walked right up, stopped, waited while I unlatched it, and then went sideways while I swung it open (and it was even his bad direction for sideways!). Gold star for Ace on his first gate-opening effort; you would have thought he was an old pro!

We headed out the driveway, walked between the trailer and the barn, watched some traffic and a biker in a neon-yellow shirt go by, and headed into the pasture. We walked past a rock bigger than Ace, along the fence line by the road, up the long side by the neighbor’s house with the barking dog, and back down towards the gait.

Ace didn’t bat an eye at any of it.

We’ve worked exclusively in the arena since I got Ace back in September. At first, it was the safe, enclosed area, and then it was too cold and icy to go out.

But now that we have a decent level of communication and it’s getting nice out, it was time to try some new things. Ace wasn’t at all hesitant about leaving his herd and heading outside somewhere new (although Marahute hollared for him the whole time we were gone). All the new sights and sounds and movement didn’t bother him.

I really am enjoying having such a sensible horse.

And he’s still enjoying all of the attention. Despite the fact that I’m making him work, he’s always happy to see me and expresses interest in what we’re doing.

We’re coming out of the long winter better than we went in, just imagine what we can do now that the weather is turning and we can do more.