BBFF's 100th Post Give away...

She's awsome and so is her blog....

Go check out http://mylifewithstar.blogspot.com/ BBFF (Best Barn Friend Forever) is having a sweet Blogger give away! Check it OUT! Or you're lame.

Ciao till later...

Yeah me...oh and Grace...

So today is was a turning point for me and for Grace. I stopped by the feed store and picked up a cheap bridle...that looked like it would fit...after much deliberation with the counter girl who also has Arabians I settled on one. I really wanted one with clips for the bit but they didn't have one in stock..and I think I saved myself about 15 bucks getting one with screws. It really wasn't that difficult to put the bit on after all. Even a tack challenged gal like me figured it out with no BO or BBFF to be found to help. I can be a bit (no pun intended) helpless at time...(no comment from the peanut gallery)

So after the said bridle switch into the cave of doom I went. Treats in hand. She was very excited to see mee to day. It's always fun to walk into the barn and see her head sticking out of her stall staring at me, then when she realizes it's me the knickers begin. Nothing is better than that "I've missed you, where the hell have you been" knickers.

I have been using those peppermint wipes on the bit and they really do seem to help. So after the initial investigation and a little bit of me trying to figure out how to hold the lead and get the bit in her mouth and up and over her ears at the same time. This is a feat in itself. So to all of you trainers I tip my hat to you for sure.

She let me put the bit in her mouth and get the bridle up over her ears not once but 3 times, count 'em, 1, 2, 3. Sweet...

We also worked on standing in the tack area. That also went better than expected. So we seem to be on a roll. Keep your fingers crossed for me...

Random things...

With a little help from my friends and peppermint wipes...Grace had a bit in her mouth but I found out that the Bridle I have for her is HUGE. She is half Saddlebred so you would think her knoggin' might be a bit bigger but I think her tiny head must be the Arab in her.

Anyway she took it really well, but there always has to be a but right...We must work on Desensitization...that is my goal for the winter...playing the friendly game and just getting her to be not so fright and flight minded. She is so spooky...it worries me that she will ALWAYS be that way. I would love to hear about other horses that started out this way and were successful at being able to spook in place and not always being ready to bolt in a panic at the first sign of something scary. I hope she is able to trust/respect me enough to know I would never do anything that would cause her to get hurt.

Work, Work, Work...I love it but I hope I have the patience for it...as patience is a virtue that I have little of.

I need more hours in the day...time to work to make a living, time to keep a Martha Stewart house, time to be mother of the year, and time to be a good friend, time to be the wife of my husbands dreams.....as well as time to be me.

Halter here we come....

Tonight I asked my BBFF to help me with some new exersizes to do with Grace to keep us engaged and not getting bored. She's been there done that with her pony Star and I really do respect the way she has trained her horse and the way she works...

So after a little ground work of disengaging her back legs when asked and doing well with that BBFF took her turn with Grace. She showed me how to get her to square up and get her to move front feet only to stretch out as well as moving JUST her hind end to square up...and being half Saddlebred getting her to start to parking out. It was actually alot of fun and Grace did great. She caught on really fast...so I think this spring and summer we may hit the open shows just for fun to see how she does...maybe even try our hand at some horsemanship...

Any suggestions would be great! I'm always up for ideas to keep from getting bored doing ground work.

Also I would love to know how you introduced the bit to your young horses...just getting them used to it. Tonight I tried the treat in hand with the bit in the same hand just to get her to be interested in the bit and not be afraid of it. I didn't push the issue it was just a short intro....

Thanks JP for being my BBFF and for taking the time to mentor me it means EVERYTHING!

And just a p.s. I wanted to say how thankful I am to my husband for giving me the time at the barn with encouragement...Even though he's not a Horse guy he let's me be a Horsie girl...

Gracie the YouTube sensation.....

Here is a little longer Video of Grace (Clickhere). It's a boring video, but I love it. It shows her curiosity and how friendly she is. She was born to be a movie star...or so she thinks. Have a good day guys! I'm off to get ready for work.

Gracie Video...not the best quality but I never claimed to be a pro photog...

Here is a short video of Gracie that I took tonight... I know they are a little dark but you get the idea....I think she is amazing to look at she still takes my breath away...

Publish Post

I have another video I'll post in a bit...but anyhoo...here you go...

Finally...some work.

Last night I made it out to the barn for first time in about 3 weeks. I went in with the battle gear on and ready for a long night.

As I walked in I saw the beast with her head sticking out of the Stall window...challenging me, taunting me. So I grabbed the weapons...PP halter, lead rope and the sword of Gandolf (whip). For some reason the barn owner doesn't think that I can take Gracie's blanket off myself so she took her blanket off for me (again not quite sure why but....) And her halter is magically on (againI think barn owner did this ) But anyway....I took her out and there was a small battle of who would leave the stall first but of course I won...with a little patience training thrown in.

So the dreaded side tie...was nothing...She stood like a pro. Okay not a pro she still was a little figidity but she didn't break a tie or threaten to pull back. This was huge for me. I was so pleased. So grooming was next...her coat just shines like a copper penny. It almost looks sparkly... it really is amazing. She let me pick her feet no issues...again I was a little worried just because she hasn't been handled in a while but she acted like it was old hat.

So off we went to the round pen. I was a little concerned about her attention span because BBFF and Star were haveing a meeting of the minds in the arena over the Scary blue barrels...but Gracie shocked me yet again..not having regressed at all over lunging on line or free. Then we started working on flexing and moving her hind quarters independently. Then we moved to her front end. She did great. I was so proud of her. She looks amazing and is retaining the things she's been taught. I fell in love all over again. It's a great way to start the new year.