Okay, Sir Richard and the rest of you probably thought this is a silly idea but.....

My trainer said, "Just tack him up, get on him and sit for 10 minutes. Get off and your done." It teaches him, patience and it doesn't take a lot of your time. and you get used to each other.

So, I brought Richard in from the big pen, cleaned his feet, brushed him, got the saddle on him. Left him in the rope halter.

Now, he is still learning to come up to the mounting block. I went ahead and brought the mounting block to him. He stood like a rock for mounting. Yay!

We sat for 10 minutes. He looked back at me from both sides of his face. I patted his butt, adjusted my feet in the stirrups, rubbed on his neck.

I relaxed. I needed that.

I got off onto the mounting block, took his tack off and we did a bit of brushing and we were done.

Richard thought that was the shortest ride he's ever been on. :)

I got some apple slices out. I am teaching the horses to come when I whistle.

I finally got Sir Richard to the new trainer's place so she could look him over and give us a lesson together.

He did really good with all the dogs running around.

He was just a bit worried about the ATV but the guy was really nice and didn't run up on the horse.  When he stopped and turned it off.  Then he said "Nice mind."   "Good looking horse."  "Like his bone."

I asked him if Richard could come see the ATV.  Richard sniffed it and then wanted to meet the guy on it.

The trainer looked Richard over.  She said she loved his "Jewish nose".   He has rather Roman profile.  He also has a furrow down the center of his face.  She thinks there must be some draft in him somewhere.

Good legs, nice feet, maybe just a little long in the back.  She thinks he is a gorgeous horse :)  Of course, so do I.  A nice set of withers to keep that saddle on.

Mentally, the horse has a good mind, she told me.  He is a bit of a couch potato.  "Yes, he is and I don't mind that a bit."  She thinks he keeps an eye out for things kind of in the middle distance and that nothing will sneak up on us.

[However, I do not feel that this horse is looking for trouble.  Just likes to keep an eye on things.  I am making sure I don't create a lookey loo horse by bringing his attention back to me and by being a good leader.]

She thinks he has a nice steady walk and will make a great trail horse...not too fast, not too slow.

She thinks what I think...this horse is a gem. 

After all this, I got on and we sat for several minutes.  Then, we started walking circles.  I have a problem keeping my hands closed around the reins instead of holding them like a teacup :)  I will have to make sure I keep working on that.

I had to pull Richard's head towards the center.  He wanted to look to the outside.  There were lots of things to look at like other horses, the neighbors and dogs across the street, the husband feeding their critters.  I had to make sure I did the release as soon as he turned his head a bit to the inside.  CJ members will understand this well.

Here is the tricky part.  Keep some light contact on the outside rein but pull the inside rein until his head turns a bit towards the center and then release the pressure on the inside rein!  Go ahead and keep light contact on the outside rein.

Richard, quite naturally, felt a bit confused here and there.  We are learning about one another.

The trainer said, "Never let this horse be ridden by someone else.  He is customizing to you.  He is a wonderful horse."  She said, "I could ride him to show you what he can do, but I won't. He is learning about you."

Here is where it got super fun.  I am walking the horse around in a circle.  She says, "Maintain that light contact on the outside, loose rein on the inside.  Now put your inside foot on his side."  Richard bent around my foot like it was magic while we were circling.

For backing, "Shorten the reins, pick them up like you are going forward, now ask him to back."  Now ask him to back more than one step so pressure, release, pressure, release, pressure, release.

So, it is a difficult thing to manage reins.  "Shorten your reins."  "Give out the reins about an inch."  "Tighten the outside rein until you feel the contact lightly.  Leave the inside rein loose."

Then, you add in each foot separately.  So, you end up having your feet and your hands all doing different things.  Kind of cool when it all comes together. 

She also said she wishes I would not  ride out with the neighbor yet.  Keep coming to take lessons.  She would really like that and she thinks that we can go far with me and this horse.  Give the two of us a chance to learn before we go out.  I like that she is patient and wants us to do good.  And she believes in me.  I told her I hoped to be doing good by the end of summer.  Maybe be ready for a trail trial [for fun, of course].  She said "You will be doing great by then."

Basically, we did mounting, standing, walk in a circle in both directions, turn, back.

He did good at standing.  He likes to park out with one foot cocked in the back so you end up sitting on a crooked platform.  I think he took a nap while we were standing and talking in the middle of the ride.

There was a bit of testing by Sir Richard.  He said "I don't want to turn my head towards the center."  I said, "Perfectly reasonable request.  I am hanging in there."  Released the pressure as soon as I got some action.

I so love this horse and I am so glad I found him  We had such a successful day and it wasn't scary at all.  He wants to do good and he wasn't frustrated when things got a little confusing.  He looked content when we finished up.

I did hand out an apple slice after we negotiated the gate out of the arena.

He loaded up like a dream going to and from the trainer's.  He was fine in the parking lot for my restroom break in town.  And he was fine when I stopped for gas.

When we got home, I asked him to step out of the trailer backwards since it is safer and better.  He teetered on the edge on his tippy toes.  I said "You can do this, Richard."  He finally stepped down and I told him he was a good boy.  He said, "Yeah, now let me finish backing out of here." 

First Ride

Sir Richard goes for a ride...and so do I.

We trailered to my trainers house. Really, I didn't want to be nervous but I was so nervous. The wind was trying to come up and I have never loaded this horse by myself before. I haven't driven my rig in quite some time. The trainer has like 10 dogs running around there [all really nice and good with the horses].

Plus, I was going to get on that horse and actually ride today :)

I brushed Richard and cleaned his feet. I saddled him. Left him out back tied up while I finalized a couple of things. Loaded him up and took off.

I let him turn around and exit the trailer facing front.

First of all, the trainer and her hubby thought he was a great looking horse. Hubby said "He has a great mind."

The hubby was on an ATV. He turned it off and I asked him if Richard could come look at it. "Sure." Richard sniffed the ATV.

Really, all I really wanted to do today was ride at a walk. The trainer could tell that just from looking at me. :) I just want to get to know Richard and we don't really know anything about him.

He did amazingly well especially when you consider he hasn't been ridden in a couple of years.

We worked on me holding the reins properly and walking in a circle. Hard to explain but there was work to do on my part. Richard tested me a bit but it was mild.

I did pretty good. I finally managed to loosen up a little. I didn't hang on the reins. I got the idea of tipping his nose and then letting off the pressure.

We did circles, stood patiently, backed, turned.

My saddle seems to fit well so that is great.

I actually have every confidence in Sir Richard but I do feel we need to take the time to get to know each other and I am learning new skills at the same time.

I love this horse. He and I are going to be a great team.

I loaded him up and carefully drove home. I asked him to back out of the trailer. He teetered on the edge hanging on by his toes but finally stepped down. So good.

Sir Richard and I had a nice day.

I got home about 11:30 and took him out to the big pen before he could start pacing the fence line in his home pen.

On our way out there I stopped at the round pen. First time asking him to do a little something in there. I didn't do a lot. I asked him to walk but he soon decided he needed to trot. I asked him to turn but he turned into the fence so I cut him off and tried it again in another circle. He cut the circle so I shooed him out to the fence several times. He did decide to stay on the fence after that.

I stopped him, turned to the side and let him come in. We did a few little things after that and I put him in the big pen with Pony.

The wind was ripping about 3pm so I went out and got Richard who did fine in the wind. Then Pony who did better than I thought he would.

I messed around with Richard in his pen. He drooled water all over my pants legs and boots. We got a selfie and I talked him into playing with the jolly ball a little.

I brought Sir Richard home last Thursday. We arrived at 3:30 pm.

I finished the platform today. I got this platform built in only 3 days :) A new record for our area. We have to drive pretty far to get lumber.

Today, we practiced getting on the platform. We stepped up and walked over it and got off. We stepped up and stopped. We backed off.

We did that from both directions.

He avoided the platform a couple of times. I told him he was cheating! I backed him up and we did it again.

Chilly and windy and might snow a little but I do want to work with him again later. The wind had him a little bit edgy but I asked him to stay focused along the way to and from the front area. We did great.

We can maybe work a little bit in his home pen on a few groundwork exercises if he looks worried about being in his pen. Worst comes to worst and he gets upset and starts pacing, I'll take him out to the big pen even if it is a blizzard :)

I want him to feel good about backing off the trailer if we go tomorrow. It will be cold so we might not go to the trainer tomorrow. We will see.

Did I mention I love this horse? Yes, snuzzles and hugs and I smelled deeply of the horse scent on his neck.

Day 6 - Sir Richard

Ignore if you are tired of us. The first couple of weeks with a horse means a lot is happening. We are learning about one another.

I went out to get Sir Richard. I thought, why not tie him up to the blocker tie ring while I run in to get his eye ointment. He might have a bit of an eye infection in the corner of his eye. He stood like a gentleman the whole time.

I thought, "Hey, there's enough time to brush him." He likes the stiff brush. See, we are getting to know each other. He also likes to get brushed on the underside of his neck.

He moved when I went to get the hair brush so I backed him right back into place. I brushed his tail. Then I moved on to brushing out his mane. He looked so relaxed by the time I did his bangs. We did some soft kisses :)on his big hairy nose and the soft fuzz on the side of his muzzle.

I walked him out of the pen, asking him to back for me to open the gate. I made a left turn at the driveway and we went out to the front area. He sniffed the new platform I am building. We stood out there looking at all the new things and we both sighed and relaxed.

On the way to the back pen, I turned and we did the log step overs. Four fairly big logs that he stepped over without touching a single log!

Then, single line follow on the single track I built.

Stop, back between two greasewood shrubs. Step up. mule :) Back, step up. Back, step up. I only had to get big once for him to pay attention on the back. Still a lot of hanging in there on the step up.

Did head down. Had to hang in there. We got it.

Lead with respect. Missed the stop, back up.

I could feel the peace of horse and owner. The bond that we are growing. The letting go of fear on my part [yes, I have fear]. It felt good and right and lovely.

All three horses are out back in the big pen today. We will have to bring them in after dark but I think we will be fine.

Day 5

Having a new horse is daunting in some ways.

Sir Richard had me worried due to his working himself up into a totally sweaty frenzy and making a deep rut where he was pacing in his home pen.

I put him out in the big back pen and put Pony out with him yesterday.

Today I decided to go ahead and put both Pony and Wiseguy the mini out with him today. They are in the little guys pen and his own big guy pen for the night.

Richard did so much better today. Not a sign of sweat. No pacing that I could see. Thank goodness since it is barely above freezing and last night was 8 degrees. The last thing I need is a sweaty horse.

I worked with Richard on the way to and from the back big pen. I mostly had him back, come forward, back, come forward. I did do a few hind and a few front. I bumped him lightly if he lost focus and started lookey looing.

When I stopped and he didn't stop right away, I backed him a few steps.

I made sure I didn't nag and went straight from a small ask on the back to "Hey, back up" since he does know what I am asking for at this point.

I rewarded the small tries at "forward" since he seems a bit like a mule on that coming back to me :) I think he is starting to understand that too.

I love my new horse, Sir Richard.

It's cold today so I threw him some hay at the butt crack of dawn. I asked him to back off to throw it in the feeder. He turned away.

I came in a few minutes later with a bucket of water to top off the big heated water bucket.

He hustled over to take a look. "oh, nothing to see here...it's just water," he says.

I reached out and gave him some scratches. He leaned in close and we exchanged breaths.

He turned to go back to his feeder so I told him "Off you go then." with a small wave of my hand.

Day Three with Sir Richard.

It's all about getting to know one another today and I enjoyed it immensely...and so did Richard .

I got the new bridle put together. I think it fit him well although we are on the last notch.

What the heck, why not throw the saddle on while I am messing around?

I tried a different blanket under the saddle. I think he liked the first one better.

I adjusted the girth of the saddle and he stood like a rock for the whole process. Such a good boy.

I removed his gear. He liked the bit so much he didn't want to give it back to me. Made me laugh. I snapped a pic.

He put his head into the halter willingly.

I did Task One of backing with a shake of the lead. By the time we were done he had a pretty good idea of what was expected. I asked him to come to me and that was a bit harder for him. He got the idea. Back, forward, back, forward. We are learning to work together.

I finished up with a stiff brushing to clean up his sweaty dirty self. Then a soft brush for the legs and knees and butt. Cleaned his feet. Put some hoof conditioner on the hooves.

I left his halter on while I ran into the house for a soft wet cloth to wipe his dirty face and eyes with.

When I went back out, he thought he was done and didn't want to come to me right away so I sent him around the pen. Unfortunately, his stall door was open so he finally dashed in there. Had to chuckle but I snapped on the lead, walked him out and wiped off his face. "Feels good, doesn't it, buddy?"

A lovely day of getting to know each other. A few kisses, a lot of "good job buddy", a few instances of hanging in there. A good time for all.

The wind is ripping so no lesson but I get to go on Friday. I will have some practice at backing up the trailer by then and I need it!

Photo of him all decked out and photo of him holding onto the bit.

What I know he knows

Day Two

What I know so far about my new horse, Sir Richard.

He knows what "Step" means.

He likes being brushed.

He will back off to get his food although I did have to pick up a stick for a longer reach towards him this morning. I am not making the mistake of allowing the horse to stand there being pushy when I want to throw hay.

He puts his nose right into the halter.

"Head down"

"Back"

"Give me your head" from the saddle.

Surprisingly, not super comfortable with me on the mounting block working him from above. Not terrible but not sure of it.

By the way, I told my old horse trainer that I have been taking a few lessons with a different horse trainer because the new trainer has different horses to ride on. I thought it was time to change it up a bit. I thought I might get a few more lessons from the new gal. I softened up the change by making sure she knows how impressed the new trainer is with what I have learned. She has said "Who ever has trained you has done good."

I fixed up his pen. The gate used to go in front of that tree and now it goes behind it meaning a much straighter line to open the gate from the horse. I put a 16' gate in as a panel so his pen is bigger too.

He tried to colic today or maybe he actually did. I went out and he looked incredibly sweaty and he had dirt all over him. I watched for a bit and decided to give him a little alfalfa. He ate it fine. I ran out and bought some wheat bran and made a call to the vet. She said the poopy poop means the event is probably over. Looks like he is fine now.

I didn't get to work with him today due to his stomach issues but he did help me realign and add panels. So cute.

Unfortunately no photo of Sir Richard in his saddle!

Day One

He got groomed and boy did he need it. He had some dreadlocks :)

Cleaned his feet.

Got a pad and a saddle on him.

Stood ground tied like a rock!

Had him walk, trot and lope with the saddle on.

Just had a halter and a lead rope.

Got on him from the mounting block but we will have to work on that. I moved it next to him. I petted him from above.

I got on him.

Asked him to give me his head several times on each side.

Asked him to walk.

We did a few circles in each direction.

You could tell he was trying but we don't communicate as a team yet and I don't expect us to.

He stood like a rock for the dismount.

I think he loved the brushing and the attention.

We will keep getting to know each other over the next few days.

This is Sir Richard. We had an uneventful trip home.

He loaded up easily. The old owner was very sad to see him leave.

Unloading did not go super smooth though not too bad. He started to turn around so I told him to get off me. He backed and got one foot off and then came back into the trailer where I told him to get off me. "Back" "Back" "Back" He awkwardly got both feet off the back of the trailer then his front feet and we backed a couple more steps. "What a good boy."

We stood for a couple of minutes letting him take it all in.

A calm walk to the back area although he was sniffing the whole time. I said hi to the dogs that were behind the fence. No spooking just a lot of snuffling the air.

I got him into his new pen and admired him for a couple of minutes while he looked at the water and the goats and his new horse friends.

I threw some hay and he was content to eat while I took a few photos. He was really good about me coming around behind him.

He is now busy sniffing his entire pen to see what his new world is all about and back to eating :)

We will get to know each other better over the next few days and I can see I need to build a platform so he can get comfortable backing of a ledge.

I'll take him out and let him see more of the yard. We will start on task one tomorrow.

Looking at horses.

I just bought a leg bag for my gear for a horse I haven't met yet because we are going to go on so many solo rides :)

I am going to meet the horse today. Not sure if I will ride. I had an experienced rider who sent me videos of the horse being ridden bareback and in a saddle. I am not sure I will know if my saddle fits and I want the horse to have a good time when I first get on him.

I'm thinking walk him around, pick up his feet, brush him.

I have an appointment for a vet to do a coggins and a PPE. We will discuss whether xrays are necessary at that time. I am fortunate that a horse vet is available to come out.

It will take until next week to get the coggins test results.

I am going to ask for a trial period. I want my instructor to meet him and see how he does.

Wish me luck. I've talked to the owner, the gal that had her friend ride and took videos. I have asked a ton of questions. Now, it is time to go meet the horse in person.

It's like a first date. Will it be like, love or will we look at each other and say "What was I thinking?" I met my husband through a newspaper ad. We talked for two hours the first time we met in person at a coffee shop. Maybe there is a chance that this horse and I will have a long conversation today.

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