mimi

bad pony

/ Ashley Wingert / 4 Comments

I think it’s safe to say spring is here, based solely on my pony’s behavior.  She was bad, bad, bad on Saturday.  Actually, I take that back.  The day started off somewhat inauspiciously when I went to collect her from the pasture and she wandered off to the far back corner.

She was actually pretty good under saddle, apart from offering the most half-a**ed, lazy canter ever.  And deliberately trying to bang my foot and/or stirrup into the railing several times.  And thinking that offering up several unasked-for flying lead changes might mean she finishes faster.

Sometimes I suspect I might have over-trained my pony, at least when it comes to anticipation and ringwork.

She was even good for working on her hooves afterwards.  After the past couple times of trimming, I’ve not been thrilled with her feet.  Nothing concrete I can pin down, just that they weren’t quite there.  I suspect I might have been getting a bit too enthusiastic with the bar and sole removal…again.  It’s a challenge, because her bars grow incredibly fast, and after her abscess a year and half ago, I’m paranoid about “stuff” getting trapped up in her sole again.

You’d think an abscess is the end of the world the way I keep going on about it.  But hey, give me a break.  That was the first abscess I’ve ever dealt with.

So this time, I took a very conservative, “If it can’t come off with nippers and a hoof pick, it’s staying in there” approach.  I also wonder too sometimes if I keep trimming her feet down to what I’m expecting they “should” be — Little Ms. Tiny Feet — instead of letting them grow and expand.  Because it wasn’t like she had excess flare to remove, or ridiculously high heels this time.

Once again, I forgot to take pics.  Fail.

But I was happier with how they looked this time.  A couple small chunks of loose sole came out with a nudge of the hoofpick, then I rasped her walls down, paying special attention to balance (I can balance better with a rasp than with nippers, I will say that) and putting a really good roll on her edges.

We’ll see what they look like in a week or so.

There’s always something to be learned about this hoof trimming thing, and just about the time you think you have it figured out, the horse goes and does something to change it up on you.

But onto the “Bad Pony” part: After we were all done, we wandered out into the trail course to do some groundwork.  I figured it would be fun to let her “play”: do a couple circles and hop over a low telephone pole.  She figured it would be more fun to eat.  That was Discussion One, which ended with me popping her in the butt with the end of the lead rope.

Not Happy.

Then we examined the pole.  Telephone pole, probably about a foot tall.  She could trip step over it in her sleep.  Examined it from both sides, then asked her to trot over it.  From one direction, she hopped over it twice, looking pleased with herself.

Reversed directions, trotted at it, and right at the base of it, slammed on the brakes and moved to wheel away.  She was blocked by the fence on one side and me on the other, and she’s finally learned that the consequences of running into me are far greater than whatever she’s trying to avoid.

So she backed up, then tried to wheel away.  Didn’t get anywhere.  Made her go at it again.  Repeat.  Never mind this is something low enough for her to step over from a standstill.  Backed her away from the whole thing and asked her to circle around her.  She shook her head.  I swung the lead rope at her.  She backed up a bit, pinned her ears, then hopped up in a little baby-rear a couple of times.

Well.

This used to be her favorite trick as a defiant, attitudinal youngster……about 12 or 13 years ago.  She’s a bossy, dominant mare who really hates the “submission” game.  I rarely ask for full submission, mostly because I’m much more into an active partnership type of relationship in which both of us are committed to working together, versus one in which I control every second, every footfall, every thought.  Quite frankly, I want a horse with an independent mind and ability to think for themselves and make smart decisions. (“No, you idiot, you just tried to steer us over a cliff” comes to mind…)

But I won’t tolerate that kind of blatant disrespect.  When it comes right down to it, I am the herd leader and I will act on it.

So I popped her on the nose with the leadrope.  I don’t advocate aiming at the head in most situations…but she’s dominant enough to need an immediate I Mean Business wake-up call.  It worked: she moved away from me, did a couple of circles, then hopped over the log.

And we ended it there on a good note.

I was kind of shocked, and I think she was, too.  It’s been years since we’ve had that big of a disciplinary blow-up and subsequent schooling session.  Guess it just goes to show that horses aren’t static creatures who properly stay within the mold we try to craft them into.  And they’re all capable of reverting back to temporary “Problem Child” status.

And I think we’ll avoid doing too much inflammatory groundwork while it’s spring and she’s in a Mood.

Someone please remind me why I like mares.

Music to Ride By

/ Ashley Wingert / 2 Comments

Music is one of those prerequisite things in a lot of the barns out here.  During my formative, growing-up-with-horses years, I spent quite a bit of time in barns that played a lot of music.  Add to that the fact this is Arizona…the southwest.  Wild, wild West sometimes.  Can you see where this is going?

Yeah…I still know/remember pretty much every country song that was popular between the years of 1993 and 2002.

Music also tended to play a part in horse shows…when the “Serious Business” ring work was over and it was gymkhana time, someone would typically kick on the radio.  Music seemed to make the ponies (at least mine) run a little bit faster.

It also meant the long-suffering show parents (and ponies) were forced to listen to the musical, karaoke-esque stylings of a bunch of kids as we’d sing along in between whoops and hollers of excitement.  Sorry, Mom and Dad.

Some of the larger shows would actually play music during the classes, even the ring work.  It’s very popular at large shows, such as the Scottsdale Arabian Show that’s going on right now.  It definitely adds some extra excitement and energy to performance classes.  And one of my favorite classes to watch at Scottsdale is the Liberty class, in which the horse is set loose to run around the arena and show off their athleticism and movement…all set to music.  Great fun, and a class I’d love to participate in some day.  (I’ve got a great playlist of song possibilities.)

One of the few things I was disappointed about never getting the chance to do while I was still showing in POA was Freestyle Reining.  It’s a class only offered at the International Show, which I attended once but wasn’t at the riding level (myself or Mimi) at the time to handle that particular class…helps to know how to do a flying lead change…or actually stop.  :)  But it’s a fun class: You come up with your own reining pattern that displays a certain amount of skills: flying changes, sliding stops, spins.  Standard stuff you’d expect from any skilled reining horse.  The catch?  It’s all set to music.  And the POA version, at least, also included a (very often used) relevant costume option.

Despite never competing in the class, I spent a lot of time practicing what I would do for it.

Long story short: Mimi and I have spent a lot of time riding to music. 

Oh, yeah…I also sing when I’m bored and/or nervous on a ride.  Anyone else grow up on the kid’s TV show “Lambchop”?  I did!  Long-suffering parents might recognize it as the show that spawned the song, “This is the song that never ends…yes it goes on and on my friends…some people started singing it not knowing what it was, and they’ll continue singing it forever just because this is the song that never ends…” Repeat ad nauseum.  I…adapted it during the McDowell ride I took Beamer to, when his antics had me off and hand-walking through two miles of sandwash.

Endurance version?  “This is the wash that never ends…yes it goes on and on my friends…some people started riding it not knowing what it was, and they’ll continue riding it forever just because this is the wash that never ends…”  Bad?  Yes.  Effective?  Yes.  Singing it kept my spirits up and the horse quite happily trolling along behind me.

(I don’t claim to be a good singer, especially a capella.  I ride tone deaf tolerant horses.)

My other trick has been co-opting the line from Finding Nemo‘s Dorry, the absent-minded angelfish: “Just keep swimming, just keep swimming…”  When you replace “swimming” with “trotting,” the rhythm exactly matches the pony’s 7mph, loose-rein, troll-down-the-trail trot.

And I’ve got a selection of stuff I’ll sing quietly or hum when I’m on a section of trail that’s making me a bit nervous or uptight…it’s really hard to sing and hold your breath at the same time.  Plus, singing distracts me and lets the pony get on with her job without her rider messing her up.

So…all of that to say that today, I remembered to bring my little music set-up: iPod and little portable plug-in speakers, to the barn to ride today.  Arena work is getting a little stale again, so wanted to do something to spice it up. 

I’ll be doing my riding to music from now on, thanks.

Mimi was so happy and cheerful and forward today.  She kept offering to do more and more work, instead of schlepping around or trying to sneak to the gate.  (Well, we had a couple of sneak-to-the-gate moments, but all it earned her was the right to canter in small circles around the gate until she figured out the gate might just be a sucky place to hang out around.  Ponies.  Always testing.)

And Mimi has her own playlist on my iPod.  It’s actually called “Pony Playlist.”  Because she has music she likes.  It has to be energetic and preferably loud.  So her playlist is a lot of rock, some pop, and some country.  Want to know what Ashley Mimi likes to listen to?  (And of course the fact that I have definite music tastes, preferences and favorite songs doesn’t influence my pony at all…Because all of these aren’t on my Favorites playlist or anything…)

The House Rules
Whiskey in Mind
Let Me Go
American Made
Seven Days
(All of the above are off of Christian Kane’s “The House Rules” album.  My favorite musician [and songwriter].  A great country-rock blend.)
This Town – O.A.R.
Back in Back – AC/DC
Bitch – Mereditch Brooks
Bad Romance – Lady GaGa (Yeah, really.  Only song of hers I own…it’s catchy.)
Independence Day – Martina McBride
New Divide – Linkin Park
All In – Lifehouse
Bless the Broken Road – Rascal Flatts
Danger Zone – Kenny Loggins

Those were the ones we got through today.  There’s still another dozen or so that didn’t get played.  Eclectic much, right?  That’s sort of representative of my music collection…I tend to listen to a little bit of just about everything.

So not only did I have a great ride today, in gorgeous weather (75*, sunny, breezy…I actually got a bit pink from the sun…and they call this “winter” here, y’know…), I got to listen to music that I love.  Now that’s a good day!

Old Habits

/ Ashley Wingert / 2 Comments

Funny how some habits end up deeply ingrained.  Mimi and I have one of those, a carry-over from our show days.

When I was showing, I always wore spurs, for both English and Western.  Not because she was lazy, or because she needed “punishment,” but because it was one of those little things that differentiated “work time” from “play time.”  When the spurs were on, that meant “Buckle down and work.”  Rail work, schooling, things that required her to be “on” and performing.  No spurs meant we could both relax and enjoy: trail riding, gymkhana, casual play days.

Her responsiveness coupled with using spurs also meant I barely had to move my legs to ask for a gait change…always a plus when it came to equitation classes.

To this day, she still does her best arena work when I slip on a pair of spurs.  We can both work without them, but why make things that much more difficult?  Especially when it comes to arena work, something neither of us particularly love anymore.

Procrastinators R Us

/ Ashley Wingert / 11 Comments

It’s February, and I just got around to taking down the Christmas lights.  I mean, just, as in, ten minutes ago.

I tend to procrastinate.  A bit.

It sometimes carries over to my hoof trimming duties.  In a perfect world, I trim Mimi every 2-3 weeks.  That way, I don’t have to ever take off too much at one time.

But sometimes, it gets pushed out to four weeks.

And then I have to deal with this:

Ack…toes.  And Pony Heels.  Front hoof.

On the surface, they’re not too bad.  Underneath?  Ew.  Winter Feet.

Hind hooves.  More heels.  Not seen is the side flare.

Ever seen the movie, “The Neverending Story”?  Great movie if you like fairy tales.  Which I do.  But I digress.  The point of that is that keeping up on Mimi’s heels is my own personal Neverending Story.  Just when I get it under control, it starts all over again…

And she still has a weird growth line on the right side, just in front of her heel area, where she blew out that abscess.  Y’know, a year and half ago.

Deep frog clefts, made all the worse because it’s really difficult to get in there and trim down her bars, even with my handy little bonsai trimmers.  Part of me has become compulsive about wanting to get all that crap outta there, since I don’t want a repeat of the abscess incident, which I suspect was caused by something getting up under those bars.

White line.  We have separation.  Part of that is coming from the fact that she lives in a stall for part of the day and enjoys walking through her pee spots.

Bit I think a lot of what I’m seeing is the post-vaccine detritus that comes out in their hooves.  Shots given in late October…about three months later…yup, that’s probably the worst of the post-vaccine natural reaction finally growing out.  But that’s worthy of an entirely separate blog post and why I reluctantly given only the very necessary vaccines these days.

But after I got off my procrastinating duff, we got this:

Fronts.  Toes seriously dubbed back.  Heels lowered.  A bit too
low, since she was a little ouchy.  Impatience + procrastination
don’t make good trimming buddies.

Right front.  White line tighter.  Little less stuff crammed in there.
Ignore the weird chunks out of her frog.  My bonsai nippers are
like mini half-rounds and nip out little half-moon chunks.

Hinds.  Not as dramatic, unless you look from the front, where
it is Flare-B-Gone.

Only negative was, as I said, she did get a bit ouchy in the following days.  Which makes me feel bad, even if I know she’s a bit of a pain-wimp.  It is my first time making her ouchy in the two and half years I’ve been trimming her, so I guess that’s something.  And with our concrete-hard winter pasture right now, it’s understandable why she might be feeling all the little rocks and pebbles.

“The Princess and the Pea”, anyone???

Just when I’ve got things figured out…

/ Ashley Wingert / 3 Comments

You would think, after 15 years together, I’d have my pony figured out.

Except not.

I’ve written in the past about just how dead-set she is against bits.  Have yet to find one she really likes, blah-blah-blah, she goes best in her s-hack, so on and so forth.

Of course she had to prove me wrong yesterday.  I’ve made mention of my bit collection and how it is almost physically impossible for me to get rid of any bits I own, and so always have plenty of bits floating around for various experimental purposes and kicks.

Just for some of those kicks, yesterday I pulled out the Myler Full Cheek snaffle I own.  I used this bit on her quite a few years ago, when we were first starting out in NATRC.  I don’t remember if it was good or bad.  The couple of ride photos I have of her in it, she’s not tugging and fussing and pulling faces.  Always a good sign.

Exhibit A: (It’s hard to see, but trust me, it’s the full-cheek snaffle.  It’s a picture of a picture, since my computer ate my flash drive that had all of the images of my ride pics I had scanned and I wasn’t going to tear apart my ride scrapbook to rescan ’em all.)

Descanso Desperados NATRC
October 2002
Photo by Cheryl Erpelding

Especially when this is the alternative:

Chino Hills NATRC
April 2003
Photo by Ray Brezina

Safe to say she doesn’t like the loose-ring, French-link snaffle.  Especially since I have another several pics that look almost exactly like above.

So yesterday, out comes the Full Cheek again.  And she decided it was perfectly acceptable.

Of course.

She loves likes tolerates the one bit I don’t like to use.  (Something about those full cheek pieces getting hooked on things like belts, belt loops, bridle cheekstraps, water troughs…get the picture?)

What I’d like to know is if it’s the bit, or the mouthpiece.  It’s the Myler Comfort Snaffle with Twist.  The slightly rigid aspect of the comfort snaffle means it’s pretty solid in her mouth…not a lot of play or wiggle, so she fusses with it less. 

*shrug*

Apparently she likes to keep things interesting.

Innocence