Serious Reading
I have been greatly enjoying Alexandra Kurlands articles, or blog or book in monthly chapters? whatever you want to call it, on clicker training. I started at the beginning and am working my way through, I’ve made it to September second. New ones keep showing up in my news feed but I’m holding steady in my course, I will not read the new ones until I get to them proper like. I’ve heard her writing described as overly wordy, but I like reading and enjoy her style. It was her book, Clicker Training for your Horse, that got me started three or four years ago.
Some, ok all, but some for me more than others, of her stuff enthralls me. The chapter about priming the pump to get a horse softer in responding to cues was fascinating and I couldn’t wait until we were healthy and warm enough to get out and try. Today we got to.
Rusty was not in the mood today. I don’t know what was up but he did not want to walk, he did not want to fetch I asked if we could try the backing in a square thing. He said no. I convinced him to fetch his chicken a couple of times. Over Thanksgiving we are going to be seeing the uncle who gifted it to our dog, Daisy, and wanted some video to show him what we are doing with his gift. He doesn’t have a computer, or even a cell phone. Gasp! So I have to have the video on my phone to show him, we’ll see how that works.
He did give me a few really good bows and definitely felt like painting. We did lots of that. Thinking about it, I should probably be encouraging more brushing? Instead of working on getting him to put the brush back in the bucket? Kind of going blind here. I might be able to google it, should probably the are usually directions for almost anything if you just ask google the right questions.
Even though I am not even making an attempt to ride right now I had to answer one question she posed. Could I stand my horse on a mat, get on the mounting block and call him to me? Yes I could. I climbed on and slid right off the other side. He hadn’t felt like doing anything else, I wasn’t going to push it with a ride. Did he come at a canter? No, he didn’t. He doesn’t do anything at a canter. Yet.