Prince: Being patient.

June 21, 2011

"Ninety nine percent of horse development is having patience" Mrs. Parelli. That is what I learned today. Things go smoother, even if they don't physically go smoother, mentally and emotionally they will and in turn that will help things go better physically... more on that later.

Today Prince and I actually started with riding bareback and bridleless in the corral then after we tested our indirect rein, direct rein and sideways we trotted up the hill and into the riding ring and rode a long the rail. We did this at the trot and played with getting a nice slow jog then once we found that we rode around the rail jogging a long... it was very comfortable! 

Then we rode Figure eights and the Weave at the trot. I practiced staying on and being fluid while riding close, fast circles around the ends ;) In the end we got both the Figure eight and Weave really nice and Prince relaxed into a slower and more rhythmic trot and was much lighter. 

After that we rode down the hill, dismounted, saddled and went back up to the riding ring. There we did Circles at the canter, again looking for rhythm, relaxation and connection at the canter. Prince did very well and found it quickly and was able to canter quite a few laps in each direction on the correct lead. 

Next we did sideways to the end of the 45ft line. This is getting really good. I am doing less and less and Prince is doing more and more. We also played with jumping single barrels. Prince read my mind and knew exactly what I wanted and didn't try to dodge around the barrel. It really comes down to my focus and being really focused on Prince jumping the barrel. 

After I mounted up we rode along the rail a little and then rode circles on each end (going in different directions on either side) which is setting us up for the Figure eights. Prince got the right lead on the first try with hardly any issues but the left lead this time was the hard side. I made sure to stay calm and did this by singing softly or humming a tune. That really helped me stay relaxed and not get direct line. It took a while but in the end Prince cantered a full lap on the left lead and then we stopped. 

What really helped was when Prince started having a hard time cantering or picking up the correct lead  we would switch to Follow the rail, pick up the correct lead, canter a lap back to the end where we were circling and then softly switched into a circle again. This really helped Prince stay focused and if he got confused than we went back to something he knew and he was able to recollect himself. It was really worked well. 

So I learned that if I stay patient, give Prince the benefit of the of the doubt and treat it like he just doesn't understand, I am more inclined to want to treat it like dominance but time and time again it is that he just doesn't understand what I want, he is trying but just isn't getting it. So when I slow down and give him more support, he gets it really quickly.

I dismounted and Prince and I hung out for a bit before heading down to the corral. 

Naturally,

~Keri-Lynn