Wednesday, October 2, 2013

An Exciting Day




Wouldn't want to make it too easy
In the quest to find a saddle for Courage that fits the both of us (impossible), we tried out a super nice Ainsley xc saddle this morning. My ainsley is way, way too wide for him, so we borrowed a medium. It was amazing. For the first time, I felt balanced over him. I wanted to canter all day.

And yeah, didn't fit him at all. Naturally.

Sigh. Back to the drawing board.

We did do some fun stuff.



We put a little baby course together. That's the highest little vertical he's ever jumped! We had to put it up a hole because he started trotting over it when we practiced. And yes, it's his second time jumping a vertical in the arena and my first time riding him over one.

If you ignore me chucking my upper body at him (someone was excited she could finally get out of the saddle), you'll notice me clucking like a freaking chicken to every fence. Hm. That's partially because I have a tendency to chase horses to jumps, but I usually do that when they aren't FORWARD.

It's been such a tricky balance for us--Courage is put together so much better than Cuna that I have to do a lot less to get him where I want him. That said, I haven't really felt him commit to moving forward yet. His back moves, but the energy just wasn't there.

PART TWO

About 70% more wild than he was for bodywork
After we rode, my favorite local bodywork practitioner came out to see C-rage for the first time. He hadn't been doing anything to raise my suspicions, but I figured that a career change after 6 years on the track warranted a least a thorough look-see.

The little dude was an absolute model patient. Once he figured out that the crazy lady was making him feel better, he dropped his head below his withers, licked and chewed, and closed his eyes. According to our practitioner, he is super sore/locked up in his shoulders and all his front ribs were out on both sides.

Good news? He was perfectly symmetrical. She spent a long time on him and gave me some stretches to do that should help him along. Oh, and she said that the work she was doing would allow him to move much more forward.

Perfect. I'm just hoping she hasn't unleashed a monster!

15 comments:

  1. Gah! I love Courage. Everything he does is so stinking cute.

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  2. I have a nice Ainsley sitting in my garage. It's such a great saddle and I had zero luck selling it so I kept it for hubs. Unless you want it ;)

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  3. I will resend pics after we ride today. .. hopefully with more from today. I love that he was symmetrical, our work on the track to work their sides evenly must work:)

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  4. I wish I had money to have the chiro out every day!!! Wiz moves SO much better when he gets his body work done! And what a cute little face :}

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  5. That bridle looks so lovely on him. I would think it would overwhelm his dainty head, but it just doesn't - it's perfect :)

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  6. He is so cute! And totally chill about this whole jumping/chiro new world. :)

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  7. He is definitely a beautiful boy. Good luck with finding all the right tack for him.

    Regarding Cuna: Have you yet tested him for Cushings? Laminitis is a very typical symptom. He may not show any other changes to speak of. My Toby, aside from being a little thinner than i'd like, has a good coat is fine otherwise and yet is Cushings positive. He is on a small dose of Prascend right now and so far, doing well.

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  8. Do you do forward-and-back exercises at the canter sans fences? That really helped Hemie to understand the concept of loose rein = take us forward.

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  9. Yay Baby C! He looks great over those fences.

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  10. He's got that "Ok... Ok... GOT IT!" look, love the video.

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  11. Yay for C-rage & yourself, you guys are improving in leaps and bounds...litteraly. :)
    Sorry to hear things aren't 100% with Cuna, reassuring that farrier isn't pulling his hair out - fingers crossed things improve for him. *hugs*
    LOVE Love love the bridle Courage, stunning!

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  12. Cute efforts!! One great things David O. said to me as I was struggling to ride the difference between Encore's jump and Solo's, especially as the jumps got bigger:

    The better the quality of the jump, the longer it will take and the slower it is. You have to sit still and wait while everything happens underneath you. SLOW IS GOOD.

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  13. One. I love that bridle to pieces. two. His trot is to die for. That is all.

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