I know, I know, it’s been a while since I’ve posted anything here. Bear with me: I’ve been through a lot and I’ll probably post about it at a later time, but today I just want to talk horses. That’s why everyone’s here, right?

I moved Kiss to a new barn in January, not because she wasn’t getting great care at the other barn, but because the herd dynamic had shifted and she had to be out by herself in a paddock that backed up to some woods and the road (a corner of the property that had always kind of freaked her out). Everything stacked up and it was stressing her out too much, to the point where she had started rearing in hand for no reason. Someone had happened to mention to me that there was a likeminded person offering a boarding situation, and after meeting her and seeing the place, I was convinced it’d be a good move for Kiss.

Currently, she is in a mixed herd grass pasture and she also has a stall with a turnout run. Her only real issue now is that she is pretty herd-bound, particularly when it comes to her mare buddy, Willow. When she is in heat and she can’t see her herd mates, she freaks out. We’ll be working on that more and more, and I also think getting some time away from the barn here and there will be good for her. However, overall, she is more relaxed and really enjoys her friends.

I gave her some time to settle in and, of course, it was winter, so I didn’t do much riding. I did an in-house lesson clinic at the beginning of April and she was going pretty well, and I’ve been doing ground work several times a week in addition to ramping back up with riding. It’s been pretty windy and she’s not the most fun to work with when it’s that windy, but I know it’ll settle down soon enough, as the stagnant, hellish summer of this Midwest locale accosts us every year with its suffocating presence. Fortunately, though, that’s when we get our best results. No distractions, no urges to dance in the wind or spook at a tree limb. That’s when it’s pure work. You just have to remember to hydrate!

Anyway, so I’ve been getting back in the saddle more and more. The funny thing about horses is that they always find ways to compensate for muscular weakness or to try to get around using certain muscles. I mean, we do also, but we are taught to be cognizant of it and so we try not to do it. Horses don’t have that, so we need to constantly be thinking for them and to try to recognize when they’re doing the wrong movement and we have to “remind” them not to do that and to use the right muscles. For the longest time, Kiss was throwing her weight into one shoulder, and then I’d correct that, and then she’d throw it into the other shoulder, so I’d correct that. Now, that she’s a bit more balanced in the shoulder area, she has started to do more bracing in her neck and jaw on one side. So, now, it’s more subtle and I’m going to have to work on getting her to bend and soften on that side and step under her body with her weaker hind leg, which is actually the source of the issue.

A lot of the riding world rides a horse from the front end to the hind end – meaning that they will try to affect the horse’s balance and shape by bending the neck. This actually does not correct the horse’s overall balance. I mean, it would if the horse only had a front end, but good balance comes from the “core” and you can only really get that by affecting the back end first.

When going around a circle, you do want the head tilted a slight bit to the inside of the circle, just so you can see the eyelashes, but you don’t need to keep the horse’s head cranked around, and, when the balance comes from the back to the front, the horse’s head will naturally curl around the shape of the circle because that’s where the hind end dictates that the front end will go. Kiss’s body and head will curl around the circle in hand, but not yet under saddle, with my beginner adult body bobbling around up there. Understandable.

What I’m most proud of is, despite the tough times, I’ve been able to be fairly consistent with the training. Kiss is really starting to understand what I want from her on the ground. Yesterday, she automatically positioned herself into haunches-in when we got to the rail!

Kiss is SO smart and such a special horse. Does she also have big feelings and lack confidence? Yes, but she is exceptionally willing and wants to please. I’d take that over a “dead broke” emotionally shut down horse any day. I love her heart and her sensitivity. Just like mine, it’s a strength, not a weakness.

Under saddle today, she was REALLY locked up in her jaw to the left, so we struggled a bit on that side. It was super windy and there were folks mowing lawns everywhere, including on the property, so her buddies were also galloping wildly around. Despite all of this distraction, however, we got some nice moments, and she really wasn’t too bad at all, tracking in her “good” direction to the right. We just need to work on that weak left hind to get it stronger and stepping under her so that she can be balanced and soft going to the left.

It’s been a little over a year since I’ve really gotten back into the saddle. I’m getting slightly better every day. I’m sure Kiss would have progressed faster had I been a better rider to begin with, but I’m glad that we’re growing together and, most importantly, that we’re having a good time.

My homework is to practice haunches in on her weaker side on the ground and also to practice spirals on her weaker side under saddle, really making sure that she steps under herself with that weak left hind. On her “good” side, I think I’ll try some haunches in under saddle and also start moving her away from her “crutch” of the fence. The challenge for me will be to walk backwards in a straight line (ha).

I’ll do my best to provide more regular updates, especially on my lesson days! Yay!