Rescuing Rusty

Yesterday it was in the forties. Today the highest I saw was three degrees. Yesterday I got to go out and give Rusty a good workout. We worked a long time. went clear out around the yard and got to see many different things, work with different stimuli. Today we did a short workout in the arena. As soon as I got Rusty out the small children who had been off doing their own thing, happily unbothered by me suddenly turned into needy clingy little monsters, determined to be underfoot.

I want then to be far away when I work with Rusty. He is a very good boy but they’re so tiny. I’ve seen him go after calves, goats, and dogs, it’s worrisome when he looks at a child with great interest. Especially when he is in one of his fierce moods.

Yesterday we walked out around the yard, we practiced walking next to me. When did that become difficult? We went into the bulls pen and worked on sitting on the large piles of manure that got pushed up but not hauled out. All the directions say to use haybales but, I say make do with what’s at hand. We ran up and down the hills, piles?, and worked on standing still, everything I could think of to make it not all the hard sitting work, but fun too. I ran up the steep walls of manure and he followed. We stood still on top to practice. We ran down and went to the next pile. I enjoyed it and got my exercise if nothing else. The sitting is coming slowly. Maybe. He is squatting a little behind if not sitting yet. We walked back and I got on in the arena rode him around for just a couple of minutes bareback.

It’s fun to sit directly on his back and feel the muscles move beneath me. I can feel his back lift when he does a Spanish walk. He doesn’t know what to do with me up there flopping around. I ride Coyote bareback all the time. He’s like sitting on a big cushy couch and easy to stay on. Rusty in lean and taunt and terrifying. The more I worry about staying on the harder it is to do so. Rusty is so responsive that I drive him insane with my inefficient cues making him more tense, making me more nervous. It’s a viscous cycle. If we don’t try it we will never master it though, and putting a saddle on is way to much work, completely out of the question for these short little rides, so we persevere.

The whole thing was awesome and left me floating with joy and satisfaction.

Today we were playing outside in the cold and snow, the children and I that is. They were off climbing and digging and whatever else children do in the snow. I foolishly thought that it would be a good time to play with my pony. A silly thing to think. I got a bucket of cake for the other two, a little something extra in the cold weather, and pulled Rusty out of the pen. As soon as he was loose in the yard the littlest of the children showed up and wanted to play. I ordered him back to play with his sister. And led Rusty off the other direction trying to escape. I was tense and getting grouchy. He was overly arched, lips curled back and teeth bared. Fierce.

Rusty is a double whorl. For those non whorl reading people, he has two whorls/swirls/cowlicks high on his forehead. Double whorls mean that a horse will display two personalities and switch back and forth between the two. Also that they will mirror their riders mood, capabilities, and temper. I know that in a scholarly sort of way. Thinking back after we finished what was a fairly good if not fun and relaxing session I pondered the differences in the days. The main thing that popped out was the difference in my mind set. I was relaxed and having a blast one day. Tense and worried about the kids the next. Rusty was enthusiastic and playing one day. Fierce and ferocious the next. Was it a symptom of his whorls? A natural occurrence for any horse responding to his handler?

The first day, relaxed and playing:

The second day, imagine him as the sorrel minus the headstall and doing this at liberty. Silly pony

Have  I mentioned lately how proud I am of Rusty? In the last couple of months he’s turned into a grown up horse. He went from prancing and wanting to bolt when we left the arena to a very confident horse who is scared of very little and really wants to go out and do stuff, explore the country.

Today is supposed to be the last nice day for a week. Snow is expected tonight through Monday. The clouds are rolling in, the barometer has to be dropping like crazy. All things that usually make a horse slightly mad. To top it off Rusty hasn’t been ridden for a week or so. The footing is still ice covered mud. AND the guy is here to grind hay today. For anyone who hasn’t seen a hay grinder, the big kind, I did not take a picture. I didn’t seem prudent. But this is what we’re talking about…

So, since I had a minute, we went for a ride 🙂

Rusty was practically leaping away from my leg when I asked and wanted to strike out at a trot when we left the arena. Unfortunately I had to ask for a walk. With all the above mentioned factors in play I didn’t think it wise. Plus it was a good time to work on transitions. We rode past the guys with the payloaders and the grinder and rode to the bull pen.

Inside we quietly followed a bull or two around. I’ve seen Rusty circle and turn the goat when they are in the pen together, it didn’t take Rusty long to figure out that this was the same thing. I had to keep him held back, both to a walk, so we weren’t running the bulls or running ourselves on the slick ground, and to keep him from biting them. One even walked back and forth so we could practice working him nicely. We trotted a couple of big badly shaped circles on what dry ground we could find. Then I got off and we worked some more on sitting. The big pile of manure pushed up in there, I’m hoping, will make a good spot to train on.

Once done there we went back out and rode over to the stack yard, where they were grinding hay. And there right next to the grinder we worked until Rusty settled down. he did wonderfully. First the airplane now the grinder, our next big step is to haul off the place a few times and make sure he still does alright. Not as easily done as one might think.

I rode Rusty today. After being in the single digits, or well below for a few days it had warmed up to forty. The snow was melting, the ice was slick and so was the mud. Rusty had had many days off. We didn’t let that stop us. No one ever said I was smart.

As soon as I was settled in the saddle he was pulling towards the corn field. Letting him graze on the left over corn has been a great way to get him wanting to go out for a ride. It gave us a chance to work on whoa and walk. He is picking both up nicely. Out in the field I let him go along, nose to the ground, hunting for corn. For a horse that is so dedicated to the job he sure is bad at it. I would watch an ear appear before us as he sniffed along, and as soon as we got close he’d veer off the other direction. A couple of times he walked right between two ears, searching frantically the whole way. Poor boy.

I decided he had received enough positive reinforcement for the moment and pulled his head up. About that time I heard a distant rumble. Like thunder, or and airplane. Looking up I spotted the small plane flying low in the distance. Flying right at us. My daughter and I had met one similarly last summer and out two good older seasoned horses didn’t even flinch. Crop dusters fly over the place regularly at much lower and more acrobatic levels. But knowing it will probably be fine and sitting on an energetic, some times spooky, young horse are two different things. I settled deep into the saddle and waited. Rusty pawed his impatience at standing still. The plane flew right over our heads. I could read the numbers on the side of the little red and white two seater. I clicked when he was right over and gave Rusty a cookie. Rusty wasn’t sure what it was for, but he ate it happily asking if we could please move now?!

I let him go breathing a big sigh of relief as the plane flew off over the cattle and into the distance.

We got back to work. He wanted to trot so I let him go. The footing wasn’t as bad as I would have guessed and we did a circle or two. He really wanted to go so I sat and pushed and he gave a stunningly gorgeous canter transition. Leaping into it without taking off. I clicked him and he stopped to eat. We meandered about a little but before to long I heard another tell tale rumble. Looking up I saw another plane coming! I wasn’t as worried this time and got my phone out. Between my sunglasses and the small phone screen I couldn’t tell if I was getting the plane or not but if we were going to get buzzed twice in one ride I was going to get video of it! 😉

This one stayed farther away and was much less impressive but still made me proud of my pony.

He was still bursting with energy so we trotted, we practiced some vague and barely remembered dressage test. Then we tried for more cantering. He gave e that beautiful leaping departure again, then ducked his head and got really round. Fortunately he’s not good at bucking, I’m sure it would have looked even more pitiful than it felt. I didn’t fall off and instead pulled his head up and we stopped.

After a few more trot circles I wanted to try one more time so I asked and at a slight push from the hips he went. A far cry from our pitiful, fast trotting, enthusiastic kicking attempts in the arena. Neck arched, snorting, and leaping he cantered around our circle. Noisy and animated, and quite beautiful from where I sat until I sat and he stopped. I rewarded him and we started to work our way home.

Once there I began our work on gates and was brutally reminded of all the things we haven’t worked on.

I know I’ve been posting a lot of boring videos lately of us walking around or grazing. Well, it’s what we’re doing right now and I’m pretty thrilled about it. We got our last ride in today before the weather changes tomorrow. It was in the fifties we had to get out there. The riding is a bit treacherous, snow, mud, water, lots of slickness. All the better to learn good footing in. We went the other way in the corn field today. Down along the tree row where Coyote had his little hissy fit when Tanna was out with us. Much easier without his help. Rusty goes along like a vacuum, sniffing the ground for treats the whole way. Riding through a corn field provides its own rewards.
Going across the field he broke into a canter, the path looked clear. I couldn’t see any badger holes, they’ve been busy this fall! I sat deep and let him go. he was enjoying himself and let out one exuberant little tiny buck. I slowed him down before we got to another one of those terrifying pivot tracks. He is coming back nicely, mostly to my seat, and shouldn’t be too hard to cross water on after all these ditches. They scare him, he’s hesitant, slows down, looks closely, and steps carefully, all good things. He spooked pretty good when we were walking up the fence line. The dogs showed up later, I wonder if they weren’t what he saw. We went under the pivot twice and spent lots of time grazing around it.
I took advantage of the relatively good footing on the wheat ground to work on a few transitions, some leg yields, turns and stops. It took at least twenty minutes to walk the half mile home. Life is slow when you have to wait for treats to be eaten.

Twice!!

After going out with Tanna I couldn’t wait to get out in the big field again. The weather has been beautiful and even if I’m still fighting the sick I couldn’t stand to waste a day of it. Yesterday we went out and found some calves that had wandered under the electric fence and chased them back in. It was a little scary. He goes after things with enthusiasm. But I was able to bring him back to me nicely and we continued with a very nice ride.

Today he wanted to leave the yard at a trot. I used it to work on transitions a little. Once out on the driveway I steered him into the cornfield then let him go. We had a nice canter up the hill! We whoad once, treated then I actually asked for a canter and we went to the top. I clicked him for such a nice canter and he stopped for his treat. I let him graze a little and we just hung out. I wanted running no to be a big deal and for him to be able to stand and chill afterwards. He did great.

Then we started off across the cornfield. I let him Hoover up any corn he could find as he sniffed his way along. He was very concerned about pivot tracks. After the first few though he started crossing with less hesitance. We made it clear to the middle where the pivot was sitting. I wanted to try to walk under the first section, we would be facing home and I thought we had a chance. He did it with Tanna and Coyote leading but I didn’t think he was over being afraid. I was mostly wrong. He had no problem at all walking under it. Then he wanted to graze right there with it, nearly under it. What a good boy. For comparison, Coyote is still terrified of them. Sometimes. He’s a silly boy.

Then we slowly meandered our way back to the house. It was a good ride! I can’t wait for tomorrow! After that the weather is supposed to turn bad again so we better ride while we can.