Cassie

The next phase of being prepared for a rider to be in the saddle is mounting. In doing this I take a mounting block (or a muck bucket) and jump up and down on it on both sides of the horse – as many jumps it will take. I want the horse to look as if it’s so bored of me jumping up and down that they don’t mind at all if I step my foot in the saddle and proceed to ride them. As...

Cassie

We’ve been doing tons of desensitizing with Cassie and she’s much better with things. But, something inside me tells me we’ve not quite convinced her that her new world is greater than where she’s been. I take this feeling with caution, but I do feel like it’s time to move forward. Cassie is a very smart horse and I do think she’s up for the challenge if...

Cassie

Big day desensitizing! Cassie’s owner, Karen, was able to take a big part in building her relationship with Cassie and gain her trust. Karen spent the day rubbing ‘scary’ objects such as sacks, bags filled with cans, and flags (all that made a lot of noise) all over Cassie’s body to help Cassie realize that what Karen was asking for was not going to harm her. At the end...

Cassie

This week has been a big week for Cassie. We are spending a lot of time building her confidence working her from another horse and with desensitizing. Even though Cassie is doing much better with her ground exercises she still acts like she just doesn’t know what to do with herself. She still acts like she wants to jump out of her skin with the change of routine and something new. The...

Cassie

Cassie is a Paso Fino mare that has arrived for training. She’s around 10 yrs old. She’s a very sweet and smart girl. However, she doesn’t seem to have a lot of confidence in herself. She constantly looks for other horses and does not want to be by herself and seems to have a lot of nervous energy. There are different things I plan to do with Cassie to help build her...