Bill Rides / New Website

Friday night Bill came out with me to the farm and R-O-D-E our new mare Chocobella!!! And LOVED it!!! She's a 15.3hh 9 year old Appendix mare who is the most honest and wonderful horse on the planet, I'm convinced. Here's a photo:

He watched me get on her first so he knew how to swing his leg over bareback & I showed him how to hold the reins and steer. He was a little uneasy at first, but soon he got the hang of it & was walking like a pro!!! We're working on finding a saddle that will fit both him & the mare at the farm so next time he can ride with full tack, but he seemed to do alright bareback!

Bill now is more than willing to come out to the farm with me (he always has been - but now he has his 'own' horse to care for, not just stepping on my toes caring for JC) so he can see "his horse". Chocobella actually belongs to the farm owner who recently acquired her & she's generous enough to let me use Chocobella at my leisure for lessons :-) She's the sweetest mare and Bill brushes her all over and picks out her feet & takes her for walks when he comes out - and now rides! Hopefully we find a saddle around the farm that will work :-D

In other news, last night I decided to jump the gun and create my personal website for training. You can see it here. Enjoy!!! I'm not sure I love it, after completing it start to finish in 4 hours, I'm already sick of it. HAHA. Oh well, the beauty of it is I can change it whenever I want :-) I'll get there, eventually. Make sure you check out the FOR SALE page to see all the horses & ponies we've got for sale right now!! Show schedule for 2011 is up, too! It's a big year for us at Crystal Valley Equine!! Do you want to get in on the action??

Dreams Come True

Well, I've gone a little off the deep end in jumping. I think it's just been so darn long that I couldn't jump Jimmy that now all I want to do is JUMP JUMP JUMP!!!!!! It's so much fun and Jimmy is so good at it...HOW COULD I NOT?!?!?! So we've done the big vertical probably 10 times over 3 days now. It's just so fun. Jimmy loves it. Now he jumps it properly - not OVER jumping it - and very smooth. Love him.

There's some massive snow storm heading right at us right now, so Jimmy will be getting the week off of Mom and a week ON with Cassie. She's responsible for hacking the whole barn of horses & jumping everyone in a rotation so everyone gets their exercises this week. I'm taking the week OFF of the barn! Until Saturday, when lessons are back on & life is back to normal :-)

Bill came out to the barn with me Sunday & found a new horse that he likes to hang out with, so he takes her for walks/jogs while I ride Jimmy then brushes her while I clean Jimmy up & put him away. It's amazingly cute to see him interact with such a big, sweet horse and he seems to really enjoy her!!! He said next time....he wants to ride. It is possible. Dreams do come true.

Be safe everyone!!!

Staying Warm

In reply to Marissa at Tucker the Wunderkind's post on how to stay warm while riding, I thought I'd share my own secrets :-)

Back in the day when I rode with a trainer, it was embedded into my brain that you are not to stop to remove any layers while you ride. When I rode at Telluride, the beautiful facility had an indoor arena that never got below 45º in the coldest winter months, so wearing a turtleneck & a vest was pretty bearable.

However, due to my own stubbornness I still live by this habit, & to me it's just natural and easier to not interrupt my riding for "undressing". The kicker? My arena does get colder than 45º in the coldest winter months. A lot colder. So, how do I cope? Easy: I dress like I'm skiing.

I'm a huge fan of LL Bean and my mom jokes that I look like a spokesperson for the store when I stop at her house for a visit after riding. If they made breeches, I'd live in them. (Someday?! It doesn't hurt to dream!!!) One day on an LL Bean excursion (I'm lucky enough to be less than 10 miles from a retail location) I found these incredible SportHill thermal shirts for skiing that have extra long sleeves with a thumb hole, so when you pull your glove and jacket on, your sleeve stays down! Completely brilliant.

These SportHill thermals are fleece-lined and have kind of a soft shell exterior, so they insulate and as your body produces heat & energy, it insulates you & keeps the heat close to your body! I also ride in fleece-lined breeches which I found on tackoftheday.com for $5. The SportHill thermal tops I haven't been able to find since – I think I spent $40-50 a piece (they were $75 orig.) and they are two different bright, obnoxious colors but they're the only two shirts I wear if it's below freezing and they're absolutely wonderful. 20º-30º and I don't need anything else, just the shirt. Any colder than 20º I wear a down jacket on top, but it's incredibly cozy!

I ride in tall boots with wool socks. An headband/earmuff type item would be really handy and probably complete my winter riding attire, but I haven't acquired anything of the sort yet.

Jimmy doesn't get dressed or undressed either - he has to be tough with me. He goes outside in a heavy weight blanket with a hood & get switched to a baker wool stable sheet at night. If he'll be standing in the aisle a bit while I set a course, I'll throw his baker over him. We asked Santa for a wool cooler for Christmas. I hope we were good enough this year to get one!!!!

Jimmy Loves Lucy

Sunday Lucy had a wonderful lesson on Jimmy. He, of course, was a saint.

Saturday with me all he could do was startle and spook at any slight movement of anything. It was REALLY windy, and freezing cold, but still unacceptable for him to be such a spook.

Thankfully for all of us, he was the picture of perfection for Lucy. Here are some lovely photos of him from Sunday. Enjoy!

Jimmy avoiding me in his dry lot...

"Are you sure I have to come inside now Mom?"

Lucy cooling Jimmy out bareback :-)

Stubborn Streak

Last night the BO had to show a horse to a trainer, so when I walked into the arena today to get on, I didn't even think that all of the jumps would be out and sprinkled about the arena. I had Jimmy in tow, so I wasn't about to walk around and move all of the jumps off of the rail. I got on and decided to just ride on the inside and those that were far enough off the rail that I could squeak by I would break down to a slow walk, continue through the gap, and transition onward.

The wind today was fierce and it rained all day! The temperature dropped WAY down into the 40's (bone chilling after the nearly 70º temperatures we've had lately!!) and I had to layer up with whatever was in my car just to stay warm enough. Yes, winter will be a harsh reality check. It's coming....unfortunately.

Thankfully I have Jimmy in awesome barn hands so when it down-poured today, they snatched him & brought him into the safety & dryness of his stall. His Baker got drenched and was 50 lbs. at least, but they took it off and left it drying outside his stall. It's such a relief to have him where he's always taken care of and I never have to worry about what "clothes" he should have on each day. I had his Weatherbeeta in my car nice and clean & dry so after our ride he got tucked in with a nice, warm & dry blankey.

He warms up & cools down faster every day. His stubborn streak is starting to come back as well, which is a nod to how good he is feeling. He's only stubborn when he knows he feels well enough to get away with it. The last few days the stubborn streak has been tracking right and moving off my leg. He would rather just ignore my leg & hand than move laterally, as he's being asked. Today we focused on LOTS of work to the right. By the end he was fit to be tied but he was moving great!

I'm looking  forward to jumping again and I'm not quite sure when the time is right to do it. I've tried researching on it and I can't find much of anything. I should call John and see what he thinks....Maybe I'll drop him an e-mail tonight. My goal was to have JC jumping by Thanksgiving. We'll see how it goes :-)

Lesson with Lucy tomorrow :-)

Good Boy Jimmy Choo

WARNING: THIS POST IS A LOT OF GUSHING ABOUT HOW WONDERFUL JIMMY IS. NOT LIKE THAT'S A SURPRISE TO ANY OF YOU AT THIS POINT...JUST THOUGHT I'D AT LEAST GIVE A WARNING THIS TIME. LET THE SHAMELESS & UNRESTRAINED BRAGGING COMMENCE.

Tonight my mom came out to the farm and watched me ride. It's fun having her out since she doesn't see Jimmy that much. She's really been there first hand through every step of the my life with Jimmy, and at no point in-between, so she's only seen the high-highs and lowest lows of our relationship. It's a very proud moment when I get to show her Jimmy doing so well. She tried to take some photos but the lighting in the arena just isn't conducive to photography at night so she ended up taking a video instead.

 

We worked on a lot of transitions tonight & Jimmy is so sensitive to weight and sound it's always a lot of fun for me to work on transitions. I step to the outside at the canter and he knows to trot I mutter a "whoa" and he walks. I realized from watching this video how vocal I am when I ride. I am always babbling to him and telling him how good he is & my tone tells him when he's NOT being good. I especially like in this video how he's proving that he DOES in fact carry himself properly. Mom and I talked about it & I drilled and drilled for hours, days, weeks & months before this surgical journey to try & teach Jimmy how to properly carry his head but it just wouldn't "click" when all along I should have practiced what I preach. When I'm helping a new student or a friend with their horse who "can't get them in a frame" I always say, "You HAVE to get their body before you can get their head. Once you control their body and their body works properly, they will give you their head." That is precisely what happened here, my beautiful blogging friends. Jimmy COULDN'T give me his body for all of that time because he wasn't able. Now that he can, his head just fell right into place. I couldn't be more proud. 

I'm also happy to say that Jimmy's lead changes have come back 100%. No more wiggling or trotting or skipping, he's back to getting them each direction in one fluid movement. The combination of transitions, lateral work, lots of trotting and lots of bending has really brought this big guy all the way back to 'life'. The best part? Just like when he was a baby: all it takes is a cluck. Go across the diagonal *cluck* WHAM-O. Lead change. He's too smart for his own good too, though so you have to be careful with that "cluck" queue because if you use it in combination of an inside leg bump & an accidental outside rein twitch down the long side....pop-goes-the-lead-change. Yep. He's a little too smart :-P

The BO text me this morning that Jimmy was loaded with hives :-( I realized the last few nights have been the first since he arrived at the new barn that he slept "naked" (aka - without a sheet) in their shavings so I'm attributing that to his breakout. One dose of Dex and he seemed absolutely fine by the time I was out there tonight. The diarrhea has stopped & now hives have started. He used to break out every season change but it hasn't happened for a few years. I've got my eye on him and thankfully, I have an incredibly knowledgeable barn staff that's watching him as well :-)

Can you believe that less than 6 months ago we were all terrified he'd never be the same? If he isn't proof that anything's possible, I don't know what is.

Oh - and today I realized...December 27th is our three year anniversary. Another post on that, but wow what a whirlwind 3 years it has been!!!

Lucy Canters & Jimmy's Happy To Be Back

Jimmy is the most wonderful horse in the world, have I told you that before?! Because it's true....and here's why:

Lucy had a great lesson yesterday & after 25 minutes of strong walking & trotting she learned to canter. I don't want her just cantering around yet, so I kept her on the lunge line and taught her how to ask for the canter and got her used to asking and the feeling of Jimmy leading into the canter. Jimmy has a big movement when he goes into the canter and I think that's where a lot of kids go wrong in their early riding - they don't learn how to sit canter transitions. The most Lucy cantered was a few strides, we just practiced upwards and downwards transitions & got her used to asking for both and feeling how he moves. Most importantly, we worked on keeping her HEELS DOWN and BUTT IN THE SADDLE!!! Lots of two point trots and sitting trots are in her future ;-) Here is a video of her & Jimmy yesterday:

Lucy rides weaker to the right than the left and this makes Jimmy cut corners. He definitely utilizes his "I'm a school horse, I do what I want" card. I'm not sure if that is what made me more aware of working to the right today, or what...but he REALLY needed an adjustment. I let him have a bit of a lax week & I paid for it today. He DID NOT want to go into the corners to the right whatsoever. He swished his tail & pinned his ears in defiance when I asked.

Once we were over the "You will go into the corners and you will like it" period of the hack, we got into the "canter perfectly straight" exercise I love to do. I have ground rails set on the quarter lines and he has to canter even-paced to, over, and away from the rail. This helps when he jumps because due to his small stature, it's very easy for him to wiggle his way around the arena. In the jumpers every extra stride counts and every stride he wiggles he's missing the time. He must go straight, between my legs, with as long of a stride as he possibly can, the SECOND I ask him to. I'm not always Nice Cop ;-)

He was beautiful for the straight exercise and I could tell he was getting a little amped and wanted to "GO", so I let him. We galloped and did a few roll back turns, some lead changes, and just had fun. I made up a "jump off" as I went. Pole, turn, lead change, gallop, pole, gallop, straight, rollback....you get the drift. He was really having fun!! Ears forward, happy lead changes & overall back to my happy, happy Jumper Jimmy Choo. I think it's so cool that he loves being a jumper for me, and yesterday he was teaching a 13 year old girl how to canter. It just confirms what I've already said: He's officially the most wonderful horse in the world. There's no way around it, I'm biased and I just love the heck out of him!!!

Jimmy Gives Pony Rides

Last night a few of my friends came out to the farm to visit with Jimmy and he gave them all pony rides. He was a wonderful sport. Although not always pleased, he was always patient and for that I am grateful! Here are some photos of my clownish friends riding Jimmy!! Enjoy your weekend!!!

Lindsey, Jimmy & I

Kristen (aka x10) & Jimmy

Scott being the goofball he is & Jimmy :-) 

Jimmy Choo Afraid of the Dark

I had such a splendid ride last night. Tim didn't make it out there so I just tacked and hacked. I was the only person there after Cass brought all the ponies in and the solitude was bliss. I had my iPhone on speaker playing one of my favorite playlists on shuffle & worked a some more on lateral movements.

Jimmy completed one full long side of a BEAUTIFUL shoulder-in at the walk and I was positively elated. He's getting stronger and better with the trot work as well, but not quite to the point where I feel comfortable beginning to ask him to move laterally at the canter again. As a 4 year old he had it down, but with this recovery I'd like to build him up slowly.

After our ride I had to turn the lights off in the arena and the thought never crossed my mind that: 1. It's dark out. 2. It will be REALLY dark when I turn out the lights 3. Jimmy might not like the dark. Well what do you know. My silly self left Jimmy alone while I walked over to turn out the lights, then walked back to grab him...in the dark. Needless to say, even though I had the iPhone playing music & I was humming along I couldn't see him & he couldn't see me so when I reached out for his reins I accidentally bumped him in the nose and absolutely terrified him. He blew out at me and snorted and I could tell from the sound of his feet he was backing up away from me. I kept walking towards him and said "Hey buddy it's alright. Heyyyy...Heyy..... C'mon" and he walked right into my hands. I rubbed him, he calmed down, we walked out into the moonlight and right into the aisle. What a silly idea of me - just goes to show you that even the most seasoned equestrian makes mindless mistakes! I'm so lucky he's trusting and the sound of my voice calms him almost instantly.

He's now started his new feed to help his weight and muscle. It is VERY high protein (30%) and my feed guy told me I have to promise to work Jimmy and make sure he gets out because on this high of a protein he'll kill us if we don't let him work!! I noticed he had a little diarrhea down his back left & remnants of it on his sheet - meaning he laid in it last night. I stuck around long enough (he had great gut sounds, I knew it wouldn't be long) for him to have  BM and it was nice and solid. THANK GOODNESS. I anticipated there would be some adjustment in his tummy from the mega high protein feed, I'm happy to see the discomfort period has already passed. I'll keep my eye on him though, just to be sure.

While I clean my tack every night, I like to leave Jimmy's stall open so he can visit with me if he wants. He usually munches on his flax seed & then peeks out to join me. He KNOWS the rule is he can't step his feet out AT ALL or he gets pushed back in. Usually just an "Ah ah ah!!" and he steps back. Last night he was just belligerent and thought he really needed to have both feet out of his stall. He had the cutest look on his face so before I reprimanded him and closed his door (punishment when he doesn't listen the first two times I ask) I had to snap this photo:

He's just the cutest horse in the world! Love my Jimmy Choo!!!!

Hopefully Tim can get out to do Jimmy's shoes tonight! I've got a date with my Bill :-) Oh, and did I forget to tell you?! We're getting married 11.12.11. It's official. <3

The Greatness Continues

This weekend Jimmy continued his happiness and greatness. Saturday I hacked him and he was wonderful as can be. I was alone in the arena and it made all the difference in the world. Having the ring to myself was so relaxing and it made the whole space seem much larger than it really is. I love that arena.

We continued working on lateral aids. Jimmy is becoming much more responsive because now from spending so much time NOT riding him, I understand him even better. I didn't think I could understand him better than I did before the surgery, but time definitely told me differently. It is so much clearer to me now how he learns and interprets things, so I can ask him in just the right way to shift his body weight to the right or left and cross over in a shoulder in or haunches in and I don't get the sassy ears back & tail swish that I used to get. I also have been much more consistent in rewarding the slightest try. If he even takes one good step I will reward him and throughout the ride I will ask more and more out of him. We've graduated from strictly walking lateral work to now the tiniest ounce of trot lateral work. He's not as enthusiastic to move laterally at the trot, but he was exactly this way when I introduced it to him at the walk, so I know it's only a matter of time before he's completing beautiful shoulder-in and haunches-in down the whole long side of the arena. To date, he can go about 3/4 the long side at a walk in a shoulder-in and just 1/4 at the trot. It takes him 3/4 of the way down at the trot to understand and process what I'm asking, then the last 1/4 her "gets" it and clicks into gear, then the short side I let him extend and stretch down before I gather him up again and ask the next time around. He seems to really like this method, so I will continue with baby steps. We've got nothing but time.

Lucy had her lesson on him yesterday. Since he has come so far in the 5 days at the new farm I didn't need to borrow a lesson horse, I just used Jimmy. He was perfect, of course. He takes great care of her while still being enough of a pig that she needs to ride. His latest trick is to "park" with her. She kicks and squeezes and clucks and digs her heels into his sides and he just stands there, annoyed. I like when lesson horses pull tricks on the novice students, I think it helps them learn to keep riding every step...so long as he never considers pulling this stunt with Mama on his back ;-) I truly think he knows better than that anyway!!

Tim should be out tonight to trim JC and put new shoes on so I'll have to run out and drop off a check, and I might just as well ride while I'm there. I've got a healthy horse, so why the heck not ;-)

Tomorrow evening a few of my friends from college will be coming out to ride. They used to come out and play around and ride Jimmy when he was very young (part of me teaching him to be 'kid proof'). None of these friends have ever had riding lessons or know much at all about horses, so it's great for him to be around people who don't know what they're doing. It helps him respect space and be tolerant of nonsense. I've always kind of fussed around with him and stood up on his back, put tarps on the ground for him to walk over, slid off of his butt...but I think having a truly novice adult on and around him really does wonders for him. It's so important to me that he is 100% safe for everyone at all times.

Happy Horse

Jimmy and I had another great hack last night. He trotted very beautifully - minimal "hopping". Since his recovery he really loves to trot with his head in a hunter frame naturally, and if I pick up the slack in my reins he's gone from doing "hoppy" trot to just moving upward into the bridle so he's in more of a "dressage" frame. It's very relaxed and very fluid. He's such a pleasure to ride, I could just trot around on him all day long. I love that now I actually can!

How Jimmy is hacking without contact.

How Jimmy is hacking with contact.

Hopefully soon I can get ACTUAL pictures of us hacking!! He cantered some more last night also, and I decided it's time to build upwards instead of just forward, so I slowly would collect him and sit in the saddle, asking him to come up under me. He really doesn't like this much, but that's just too bad. Being a jumper, he needs to be as elastic as possible. ESPECIALLY with his small stature - he needs to be able to move from a regular stride (for him, about 11' instead of the standard 12') to a LONG stride, to a short stride if need be.

After our ride I felt his fetlocks, and I was concerned to realize that they were warm and puffy. Before the ride I always feel them and they were cold and solid, so I was really concerned. I gave him a gram of bute and called my mom on my way home. STUPID, JESS! I didn't think about WHY he would be swelling, so my mom explained it to me. Giving him a gram was the wrong thing to do and here's why: His cartilage was severely damaged from the bone chips, so it's still healing, even though the flesh and bone around the incision sites are fully healed. Because the body's natural reaction to healing is to promote blood flow to the area - blood filled the cartilage to help it heal and caused the swelling. He showed absolutely no signs of pain or discomfort the entire ride, so based on that alone, I should NOT have given him bute. I know now for the future - LAY OFF THE BUTE!!! It's such a habit that I have to (shamefully) admit I don't even think about it. Swelling? Gram of bute. It's naturally ingrained into my brain and last night I definitely should have stopped to THINK about why in the world that swelling and heat was there. His body is doing what it needs to be doing - HEALING THAT CARTILAGE! (With the help of Flax, Cosequin ASU, and Adequan IM, that is....) Next time I will think twice before dosing him up.

On an emotional note: I am very impressed with how quickly he adjusted to this new barn. He's very calm and relaxed and just seems happy all of the time. He always has his ears up in a comfortable way, not an "I'm new here WHAT'S THAT?!" type of way. I'm astounded with how fluid he's moving after a few days on that indoor arena to hack and every day I get a text update from the owner of the farm letting me know he's doing great. She loves him and says that they're snuggle buddies. Jimmy is reminiscent of a puppy in that regard - if someone is up for a snuggle, he's all in to be your buddy!!

Tomorrow I will be teaching Dori at the old farm and hacking Jimmy at the new farm at some point. I can't express how grateful I am that things are working out so beautifully. I am truly blessed that this transition has moved as gracefully as it has!!

Great First Ride

I love the new barn!!! It's such a perfect fit for us. It's blissfully quiet, only one or two other people there at any given time & the arena is just big enough that Jimmy and I can get work done. It's smaller than I remember from my first look but it's absolutely big enough for us to work in all winter long. It's Jimmy sized.

He was very "hoppy" tonight at the trot, but Cass had her music up pretty loud & he'd never experienced loud music in an arena, so he was more distracted than he's probably ever been. I'll attribute the "hoppiness" to distraction - the wind howled so much I could barely hear myself think so he couldn't have been comfortable in that respect either. He cantered more tonight, also. Slowly I'm bringing him up more and more each night. We went about 3 times around each direction at the canter, which this arena might be 3/4 the size of the old barn's outdoor, so I'd say that's a good amount to ask him to step up for tonight. I hope to go out tomorrow and ride again. I might bump back up to three nights a week, because I'm just so stoked to have a place to ride.

Here's Jimmy in the indoor after our ride tonight, being excellently cute. His weight looks great & he starts his new high-protein feed tomorrow so the muscle development should really pick up. Love this big guy!!!

My little nerd.

Such a good boy.

Proud of My Son

Since I don't have any human children yet, I like to refer to Jimmy as my "son".

Last night we had our big move to the "winter home" and he couldn't have made me any more proud. I was packed up and ready to go when they rolled into the driveway to pick us up. I had Cass (daughter of barn owner) pick up the push broom in case we needed it & we headed out the door and towards the trailer. The wind was howling, the leaves were blowing, it was dark....Jimmy walked confidently as ever behind me and up into the trailer. Loaded. Done.

I was SHOCKED first of all because in the past he has been a complete terror and usually took an extreme amount of time and patience to get him in far enough to close the butt-bar & shut the door faster than he could change his mind. I'm so proud that he was so confident about getting on the trailer, it's almost like he's growing up :-)

I drove behind the trailer & all 5 miles I could see Jimmy (the top part of the back door was open) looking around, wondering where he's going. At stop lights he would look back & forth from the left to the right, watching the cars go by. He stood very still, just moved his head and neck to see where the action was.

He unloaded a little shaky, but when I talked to him and put my hand on his rump to let him know I was there (Cass was on the front end) he calmed down and walked nicely off. He snorted walking into his new stall, but once he was in he calmly munched on the provided hay and didn't make a peep or show any sign of concern whatsoever.

Julie text me that he has made a friend in a TB named Maverick and seems to be very calm still about the whole move. She said he enjoyed his turn out today and is behaving himself very well.

I love my horse. I love my horse. I love my horse.

Tonight, WE RIDE!!!

Change of Plans

First of all - I have to start with a BIG CONGRATULATIONS to fellow blogger Kate on her new horse, Pie! I couldn't be happier for her - she's been on the search for a while looking for a very specific "perfect horse" and I knew she'd find one! Pie seems like the best of everything she was looking for and I'm so thrilled to see that she's found "the one". Can't wait to read lots of entries and see lots of pictures of the new guy, Kate!

Now back to The Choo - we have had a change of plans and (because I'm too excited and impatient to wait 5 more days...) Jimmy will be loaded up and shipped to his new "winter home" TONIGHT!!! I'm so tickled. The thought of being able to ride tonight, even though the weather is HORRIBLE is sooooo exciting!!!

Of course, it always seems to happen that when I plan on loading Jimmy up and bringing him anywhere, the weather is terrifyingly bad. The day of his surgery it was identical conditions: Rainy, cold, windy, dark, miserable. Please pray that he loads quickly and easily and life at the new barn starts like a breeze!

Hopefully soon I will be posting before & after X-rays of Jimmy's legs- so stay tuned!!

The Clock Is Ticking

Sorry I've been light on posts lately. I've decided it's too hard for me to get out to the barn, tack up, and ride on weeknights. It just gets dark too quickly to make it worth my while. In 9 more days Jimmy gets picked up and moved to the new barn - where we will have an indoor arena and be able to ride after work :-)

Wednesday night Bill came out to the barn with me and we played with Jimmy in the round pen. Jimmy seems to be losing all of his "bed-rest" weight (HOORAY) and the energy level is slowly but surely coming back up. He is working much more willingly and becoming more fluid all the way through his movements. I'm so happy to see him recovering fully! Slow & steady :-)

Since my posts are few & far between...and this one is short & sweet....enjoy this adorable photo of my JRT Lucy (who lives at my parents house) in her Halloween costume. She's ready to trick or treat!! Note: The Beagle (Mason) is dreading Halloween. He isn't keen on costumes.

Big Strides

Saturday was the perfect fall day & I went right out to ride in the morning. The air was crisp and the sun was shining - it was definitely a trail riding day. Jimmy was perky and happy - trotted beautifully along the whole trail, through a few loops in the hay field, and back out to the trail. I took a photo from my favorite view on the trail - on top of the big hill.

 

Jimmy seems to be doing very well with the "new" (adjusted) saddle and has been very happy to get out lately. Last night I had him back up to cantering a long side twice each direction and he seemed to do pretty well. He's very weak still - and very lazy - but he's been acting pretty happy and enjoying his rides. They were hunting across the street last night so I couldn't go on a trail, which is really his favorite thing. He's so bored in the arena...I'll have to think of more exercises to keep his attention. 

Lucy had a lesson Friday night on Smiley and did really well, so Sunday when I got home from a Horse Days meeting I called to see if she wanted to lesson again since I was home early. Of course her mom said yes & they agreed that it was a good day to try a lesson on Pepe. He's such a kind-hearted guy I was pretty confident that he would enjoy Lucy, but like any trainer I was cautious and watched his every move with her. Lucy got along him right away because he's like a big dog - he wants to snuggle with you constantly and she likes being able to pet and brush his face (Jimmy isn't so patient). He stood nicely while she picked his feet and tacked him up. He's so tall I had to help a little with the bridle, but he absolutely was well-behaved.

When she got on him he stood kindly and I clipped the lunge line on. Once she had walked 1/4 around the arena she looked at me and I asked if she would like me to "unhook her". She said yes and assured me that she felt confident enough riding him without the lunge line. I was only going to use it for security purposes, but she seemed very confident and he's a very "don't expend any more energy than necessary" type.

Wouldn't you know that Pepe was the calmest, most docile and angelic horse I've ever seen!? I hoped that he and Lucy would get along, but didn't expect quite what I saw. He took care of her beautifully and she LOVED riding him! She had her full 30 minute lesson & asked if she could trot poles by the end, so I let her, and then she didn't want to get off! She kept riding while I got Jimmy tacked up (with her mom's supervision - and only at the walk/halt) and when I was ready with JC I got on and she played follow the leader with me. She walked and trotted Pepe for well over an hour - grinning all along. She was more confident and proud than I've ever seen her and she rode him beautifully.

Who knew that this match was right in front of our eyes all along?!

Saddle Update & Jimmy's Still Fat

This week has been utter chaos for me, and it's not over yet! Monday I had a migraine so I couldn't make it out to the farm, and Tuesday I was up in Lake Geneva for a sales meeting for work. This brings us to Wednesday, the first day of the work-week I could make it out to see the Choo & I had Lucy to teach. She's officially off the lunge line 100% (until we canter!) and doing an absolutely phenomenal job. She knows just how to push Smiley's buttons and when he gets quick she knows how to slow her body to "yellow-light" or "baby trot" and she knows to full halt him using her whole seat and body. Last night I taught her that I know he's finished the halt when she puts her bottom in the saddle, because he comes all the way back and tucks his nose into his chest. Every halt after that she plopped her bottom in the saddle and the second he tucked his nose in she smiled and giggled. I love teaching :-)

After Lucy's lesson I grabbed Jim to see how he was feeling on the lunge line. Two things: 1.) He's still fat. 2.) He's really lazy. I was surprised because he hasn't been out yet this week other than in his "back yard" (which Bill graciously cleaned last night! Thanks Babe!!) and typically he's got a little more gas in the tank. I'll chalk it up to "he wanted to go back to his dinner" and leave it at that. I can't wait to start him on the new feed and start get him in a more regular program. Someday maybe my schedule will calm down...then again when I start teaching more at the other barn, it has to so I can be there to TEACH!!! I can't wait - I'm practically counting the days.

Tonight we have a venue visit and if it's still early enough when we're done I will head up to lunge JC in the dark again or turn him loose in the arena to let him stretch his legs one last time before Bill and I leave for Augie this weekend. Bill is an Augustana alumni & this weekend is Homecoming, so we are Quad Cities-bound!!

On another note: yesterday I brought my lovely Nona & Jimmy's tracings over to Saddlers Row on my lunch break and met with Michael, their master saddle fitter/adjuster. He used his own tools first to measure the width of my tracings and compared it to my saddle, then took out the 'official' Prestige tool and bent it into place, compared it to my saddle, went over and took out a ruler, started measuring the centimeters, scribbled a few things....all silently. My heart raced and I was petrified to what he was going to say. He looked up and smiled and said "Yep. We can do it." I was thinking, "That's it?!" because I had been told previously that a formal fitting would need to be scheduled, more tracings needed to be made, etc. Lots of steps in the process = someday I'll have my saddle back...maybe. Instead Michael explained to me exactly what would REALLY happen: First, Jimmy measured slightly over 34cm, which is considered "wide" in Prestige lingo (and everything, from what I've researched) and since my saddle is a 32cm, they can widen it just barely over the 2cm it needs, making the adjustment he needs. I then showed Michael the photos I had and he said that confirmed what he thought was happening. This saddle perches up on top of his shoulder/wither, it doesn't lay the way that it should. However, the back panels lay as they should and he said no adjustment needs to take place in the flocking.

The work was to begin on my saddle immediately and they hope to have it back to me by tomorrow or Monday :-) He explained how the Prestige saddles are made with a polymer tree and they have all the certified, official equipment to be able to work on them properly (he showed me the machinery to prove it). Basically the tree is plastic and they heat it up to the proper temperature and stretch it (in the nifty machine-gadget) up to 2cm (and then a little...for fat Jim). He said no matter what, they will make this saddle fit Jimmy. He said once I pay the initial fee, it's not just a one-time adjustment. He will continue to mold and shape the saddle to make sure it fits Jimmy, no matter what. I had my typical, over-excited and near-tears reaction...and of course wanted to leap over the counter and hug him. He also said that he will be keeping Jimmy's measurements and tracings on file in case future work for him needs to be done.

Oh - and just before I left he said himself that "The Prestige saddles are the best saddles in the world." which confirmed my belief in them and made me feel like a million bucks, because he's not a Prestige dealer, he just loves that they can be molded and shaped to fit anyone and anything. He's got a ton of experience and I feel very comfortable with my saddle in his hands!!!! This adjustment will be totally worth it and I can't wait to have my saddle back so I can RIDE AGAIN! (The Crosby was returned last night to it's rightful - and extremely generous - owner. THANK YOU A MILLION TIMES, "MONIZZLE"!!!!)

Kyla Meets Jimmy Choo

Today a friend and coworker of mine brought her 4 year old daughter Kyla out to meet Jimmy. Kyla sees horses from the car window and always says "Mommy!!! Mommy!!! Horses!!!" so Amie thought it would be a great activity for her and Kyla to get to do. She asked me and of course I said yes.

Jimmy hasn't had a ton of exposure to children, but every time he has had children around, he's always been just like a puppy - very in-their-face "I love you I love you I love you" type. Today was no different :-) He was a perfect, wonderful gentleman and took very good care to be nothing but on his best behavior around Kyla. He kept reaching out to give her a nuzzle, and he wrapped his neck around her to give her a hug. He let her brush, hug, kiss, and even feed him a cookie and not as much as a single tooth or tail hair was laid on Kyla the whole time.

Once she was comfortable around him, she wanted to ride, so Amie strapped Kyla's helmet on and while I got the camera ready, Jimmy stood for Kyla to sit up on his bare back. He had to have known she was up there because he stood STOCK.STILL. I asked her (after snapping 10 or so photos) if she wanted to walk and she said yes, so while her mom was holding her upright, I asked Jimmy to slowly walk forward. Not only do I love this horse because he takes care of me, but my goodness gracious does he take good care of everyone up there. My heart swelled as Jimmy very carefully took 5 slow-motion steps forward and stopped again, stood posing with his ears forward, and waited for us to take a few more photos before Kyla was helped down. I love my horse beyond words. Here are some photos of our wonderful day with Kyla (Courtesy of Amie's camera!)

Jimmy standing perfectly for Kyla to sit up on him.

Kyla said "Mom, can I have a horse?"

Jimmy trying to give little Kyla a hug & kiss

He was so sweet with her!!!

Jimmy looking back to see what's goin' on up there.

Absolutely cute as can be.

Look at those smiles!!!

Going for a walk.

Walkin'. Bein' cute.

Learning how to hold the rope. Look how interested JC is...

Baby kisses.

Struttin' his stuff!

To New Beginnings

Well my final month begins at the farm I'm at and I have to say I already know I'm going to miss it. It's been such a wonderful place for Jimmy to recover and I love that the gates are always open for me to come back. Feeling welcome is such a huge deal at farms because it only helps you feel safe about where your horse is living.

WARNING: PROUD MOMENT Yesterday I received the kindest e-mail from my current barn owner in regards to my time spent with Pepe and I'd love to share it. 

"I can't thank you enough for your help. You are not only a great trainer, but your horse handling skills are fantastic.  You are THE female "Horse Whisperer".  I'm not kidding - I mean it!!!"

Haha I told her the other day if she ever gets an indoor, I will come back and never leave. I love the barn, I love the care my horse gets, and I love the location - just off the beaten path enough that it's quiet and peaceful. I can come and go as I please, no hours, no rules drilled into my head...just blissful hours with my horsey friends without a thing to be concerned about. I will definitely miss it.

However, on that note I am so absolutely exhilarated to start things at the new farm. It's only 5 miles from where Jimmy is now and it's another WONDERFUL place. Great people, great facility, and has exactly what we need. The stalls are bigger, which is a bonus, and they have both indoor and outdoor riding arenas – essential.

I've already been hired to start hacking one of the horses there a few times a week, effective immediately so I think this weekend I'll pencil some time in to get that show on the road. There are also some new boarders coming in there this weekend so I'll try to get there when I know they'll be arriving and introduce myself.

I'm very excited for where the journey ahead. It's not about the destination!!

We're Moving!

I've been in contact with a friend of a friend who owns a barn 5 miles from where I keep Jimmy and from talking to her, she offered me the job as trainer at her farm. This means Lucy has a place to ride, I will have more students, and... *drumroll* Jimmy will be moving with me November 1 :-)

I'm very excited for this move. It's going to be a big change - as moving always is - but this farm has an indoor AND an outdoor, both equipped with real jumps and dressage letters on the walls of the indoor - which I love (not that I know what they mean, but that's for another post). Jimmy will also be switching to a new feed which is high in protein, to help his feet continue to improve, and nurse along the muscle strengthening process. He will also be living in a nice big 12x12 matted stall (it might be bigger than that...?) and during the day throughout the winter he will be in the indoor arena, so his tootsies stay nice and dry and healthy.

I will be the only trainer there, which is very exciting to me. So far I only am 100% that Lucy is on board, the other potential students haven't moved in for the winter yet.

Regardless, I'm really looking forward to our future and the new place we will call "Home" for the winter!