keepin’ up with mondeuse

These crazy weather systems that have devastated friends farther south or west (thinking about you, Texas and North Carolina!) are blowing through Maryland this week — not nearly at the same scale or violence, but still with plenty of drama (and rainfall).

it’s been an unusually wet summer just about everywhere, it seems

A former barn mate once absolutely blew my mind when she randomly — and very nonchalantly — mused that she “didn’t really believe in weather forecasts.” 

grateful for indoor riding spaces

Idk about you all, but part of my neuroses charm as an obsessive planner includes a desire to constantly have informed expectations about weather conditions. Tell me I’m not the only one LOL! For real, tho, especially when it comes to the horsey side of my life, so many key decisions revolve around the weather — like when / where / how I want to ride, for example. 

also grateful that the daily evening thunderstorms break up the heat

Perfect case in point: deciding to skedaddle on over to Tranquillity last weekend bc conditions were so fleetingly perfect. Or other examples: scheduling when to ship out for lessons with our new coach. Obvi there’s more to those logistics than just the weather, and we can make do with the indoor at that farm as needed… But ya know. Who doesn’t love to optimize when possible?

i swear i did not edit the colors in this pic

Overall temperatures have fallen since the nationwide ‘heat dome’ a couple weeks ago, but it’s still notably hot and humid — with brief respites when yet another thunderstorm blows through. I figure, if our outdoor is too wet to ride in anyway, might as well time our rides to capitalize on maximum temperature relief when it’s stormy out, right?? I mean, that’s just common sense haha.

another day, another trailer ride. we were a bit early tho so opted to chill inside the shady trailer with the fans rather than bake out in the afternoon sun

Tho, for whatever reason, most of our lessons end up getting scheduled in kinda the opposite orientation: mid to late afternoon, when conditions are maximally oppressive right before the storms blow by. C’est la vie amirite? 

these Ryobi mini fans have been the absolute best addition to my trailer set up, i literally cannot believe it took me 10 years to figure that out lol

It’s funny too bc Doozy’s barn and my coach’s barn are sorta in slightly different weather zones, and a front was about to hit at home so I opted to get Doozy loaded up to ship out slightly early vs waiting until the front was truly upon us… But then arrived for our lesson in still scorching 90*F sunshine, with about a half hour to kill. 

Woodge said we were welcome to hack the xc fields while we waited but… bleh, the sun was so strong it honestly felt better to conserve resources inside the trailer with shade + a good cross wind + these little Ryobi mini fans that I absolutely love.

the two fans are zip tied in strategic locations, and each 1ah battery lasts a few trips
(ignore the weird distortions it’s a panorama shot and doozy was obvi movin around)

Soon enough, tho, it was show lesson time! AND!! We got to play in the dressage court set up for eventing camp, yessssss! One of my biggest goals over the winter was to manufacture as many opportunities to ride inside the boards as possible. Which… obviously just like everything else I had planned over the winter, that never happened. 

But I really was eager for the opportunity to just “ride as normal” inside a proper court to help Doozy realize it’s no different from any other ride.

oooh there was a dressage court set up for eventing camp — obvi we played in it for our warm up!

And guys, omg I don’t know what it was about this lesson or this particular day… maybe Doozy remembered to take her Princess Pills in the morning or something LOL, but she was suuuuper rideable. Really relaxed* (*for her), really responsive to my position and aids, and for once not particularly inclined to spurt off at the least provocation! 

Like, I felt like I actually got to focus on myself and the coaching each step of the way, making small adjustments and seeing a difference in the horse — vs kinda just whipping around hanging on and hoping for the best. What a great feeling lol….

picts from a ride at home, but representative of both of us trying <3 <3

Also a timely feeling, too. I had been thinking a bit about the clinic rides we did last summer with Dom, that had been so monumentally transformative for us, and was wondering why things felt a little more ‘stalled’ this summer… 

Except when I went back and actually reread those posts, whether I realized it at the time or not, Dom’s biggest focus was still on exactly what we’re doing now: lateral bend and flexion to improve longitudinal balance. But now we can *actually do that,* where as last summer in those lessons it was almost a miracle if we could make it through a corner with the neck “straight,” let alone in true bend. 

#Perspective, y’all. It matters haha. 

mare was a full blown perfect princess for this ride <3

Anyway, tho. The flat work in this lesson felt really reaffirming that Doozy is ‘getting’ it, and learning, even if it’s maybe not super realistic to expect that same quality in the show ring this year / century LOL. Who cares, tho, we’re here for the journey and here to celebrate small wins!

straight up gangsta posin’ for the camera

The jumping was still a bit remedial, tho, but still insightful. Still working over just a single crossrail with placing poles, still working on being less explosive to it. Interestingly, a couple times I felt like I got fairly well left behind, but Woodge actually liked my position in those moments. 

She observed that sometimes I’m making too big of a move, being too ‘snappy’ right at the jump — and that sure, my intention is to ‘go with’ the horse and be soft, but the effect is basically just adding to the chaos of the moment. Her advice was to just focus on straightness, and try to “do less” with myself, to help really reinforce to Doozy that we don’t need to make big moves.

she’s a special biscuit <3

Overall good food for thought, and another productive session. And we managed to allllmost outrun the next storm on our way home lol, tho still got properly drenched womp. 

Ah well, ‘tis the season, I suppose!

trailer talk

Learning to pull a truck and trailer was honestly revolutionary for me. Like, kinda blew my mind that… I was *even allowed* to do this thing. Keep in mind, I grew up as (and remain) a city dweller with efficient little sedans etc. that were easy to parallel park. 

recent representative photo of “Mare At Trailer”

My first horse trailer experiences involved big 6 horse goose necks at the local hunter barn where I rode in college. Complete with saintly lesson ponies and side ramps, natch. 

Everything changed, however, when it dawned on me that — actually — *I* could have a rig of my very own. On the strength of a sentimentally important, but long delayed, inheritance of a whopping $6K, I embarked on procuring the means with which to tow my (leased — hai Isabel!) pony around town! 

for the uninitiated: link to youtube here

Which, naturally, was followed up with the realization that… I knew absolute fuck all about aiding and abetting said pony’s transition *into* said rig. 

And thus, my first lesson in trailer loading, courtesy of a local horsemanship pro that I’ve brought in time and time again with every horse since. His methods are simple, elegant and horse friendly, and I’ll forever be proud of that video above demonstrating two confident horses.

the current chariot itself, at the last barn

Because that’s the ideal, right? A horse that can be sent effortlessly into the trailer by somebody on the ground, without requiring said somebody to actually go with the horse into that vulnerably confined space. Isabel achieved self-loading prowess, and actually eventually so did Charlie too. 

Charlie was a little funny at first, tho bc… Well. He was straight up too big (in every dimension but particularly nose to tail length) for my first trailer, a step-up bumper pull stock trailer. I ended up buying him this current chariot, specifically to fit his dimensions. And even then, he’d still get halfway up the ramp and kinda sputter out. 

doozy’s first time aboard, circa 2023

Fun fact: I sorta sheepishly admitted to my chiro / acupuncturist that I’d been using feed buckets to assist with the trailer loading training for Charlie — but that our progress had stalled since he could reach the bucket without getting all the way on. 

I expected her to chastise me for relying on food vs pure responsiveness to the aids… but instead, she just sorta gave me this dumbfounded look and said, “Emma, just hang the bucket farther back.”

still fine tuning the details with Early Charles

In other words, basically, if the method is working, make the method work for you. Which… was yet another iteration (one of MILLIONS for the average horse person) of learning that… there are so so so SO many “right” way to get a thing done, and honestly not all that many “wrong” ways. 

another early ride, this time on the correct side for single horse transport

Thus, over time, I’ve slowly become a little bit less of a “purist” while still trying to hold true to those horsemanship principles first instilled with Isabel.

Doozy is a fairly straight forward horse to load — especially with two people. With one person, she had become (and is hopefully returning toward) reliable at just walking with me into the trailer, with me staying at her shoulder and then ducking under the chest barn to pop out the side to fix the butt bar and close the ramp.

preparations on the day of  “Doozy’s first time,”
with bonus Goose The Pig cameo

It’s not my ideal method, but it seemed to work. Since Thornridge, however, when the mare was in full meltdown mode, it’s been a little bumpier. 

Truthfully, I didn’t even TRY to load the mare by myself that day to go home. There was a large and capable looking gentleman at the trailer next door, and I put my ego aside and enlisted his help. Natch, with that gentle but strong presence behind her, Doozy did what she always did and walked right on. 

many months actual years now later, still #snackin

Since then, tho, well. I’ve been mostly alone. And have had to really be disciplined in sticking to the horsemanship principles lest I end up in a Battle Of The Wills with a red mare. 

Rule #1: No eye contact, for the love of god. 

Rule The Second: Be Thee Disciplined in The Timing of Thouest Release. Aka. Ask or do not ask. Accept a positive response, and accept not a negative. 

Most Next Importantest: If the horse wants to sniff / investigate / otherwise interact with the interior of her chariot prior to embarking — cool! allow it! Attention straying toward externalities is cause for reinforcing the initial ask. 

Fourth: Don’t be afraid to back up, reset, reapproach. 

the tuna can and doozy’s future are uniquely intertwined, it turns out!

And ya know. Super secret Rule #5 — take advantage of extra help when available. Sure, it’s cool to be able to git‘r done solo… But in the long run, it’s so much better for the horse to just have easy drama-free streamlined experiences. 

So ya know. That’s my personal gospel of loading horses. Subject to change at any time, obviously. And also recognizing that… Just bc my slice of horsey experiences has been somewhat reliable and consistent, doesn’t rule out that I’ve also just kinda been lucky. I KNOW some horses can… Just be challenging. Especially if they’ve been through strongly negative experiences. 

Curious, with that in mind, if there are any other rules or ‘best practices’ you’d add to the list. Or maybe there are particular quirks you’ve had to learn to work around?

summer fun

Ya know. There are a LOT of reasons why I still keep this blog active. 

Number 1: it’s glorified storage for all my photos and videos, with easy-to-search index and archive. 

Number 2: I’ve always been into journaling and documenting all the memories, adventures, and travels, however humble they may be.

and just like that, summer is HERE

But Number 3 is maybe the real unsung hero: it serves as a (relatively) accurate and faithful record of my general emotional state about all the above. 

And that’s…. important…. bc to be totally honest with you, virtually ALL of my general anxieties, neuroses and various personality quirks charms have almost nothing to do with whatever horse I’m riding (successfully or otherwise) and **everything** to do with just…. Who I am as a person.

look who regained tying privileges at the trailer!!

So after a schooling outing like our trip to Shawan last week, when it might have been easy to feel anxious about an apparent lack of progress, or frustrated with myself for not being better or whatever… Well. It takes no time at all to look back at last year’s post about the same outing — reviewing the footage, objectively assessing the Doozy of then to the Doozy of today. 

Or, to take it a step further, it’s just as easy to go back to outings with Charlie where we were quite easily bopping around N stuff with the occasional T jump thrown in. And. Go figure, my attitudes and anxieties and neuroses are almost always exactly the same lol. 

good girl, Dooz. just behave pls!

Which I’m choosing to see as… a good thing LOL. At least when it comes to feeling satisfaction and fulfillment with this particular chapter in the journey with Ms. Mondeuse. It’s not that we actually suck, it’s just that I’m generally inclined to believe so! 

Which, fortunately, is a mental habit I can sorta ‘name+shame’ and put out of mind while I go out and enjoy myself on more horsey adventures lol.

getting back aboard the cross tie train too…. i just wish the ceilings were a little lot higher in these grooming bays!

Like this week! When we went back to another lesson on remedial trotting (and sometimes remedial walking, and occasionally a little canter too!) with new local 5* coach. 

As much as I wish we’d get around to doing some jumping in these lessons, and as firmly as I believe the coach might be a little more inclined to think Doozy CAN be civilized if she sees us doing more than just flat work.. Well. Let’s be real, there’s plenty of work to be done on the fundamentals. So we persist. 

photos not from our lesson, but more or less maybe representative. a barn mate snagged some random footage from our ride the other night <3 <3

Right now we’re basically entirely focused on establishing key rules of the ride: 

1) I have to get my legs onto the horse right away, and keep them on — even and especially when Doozy might have unfavorable opinions. 

2) Shoulder control. Forever. Proactively, and responsive to Doozy’s tendencies to fall in or out relative to wherever the gate is. 

3) True bend. Not just the neck. And not always to the inside, maybe a little counter bend here and there to spice things up. But bend. In response to the aids. 

PROOF that she CAN trot poles haha

Woodge’s philosophy and approach to the training is, in some ways, very similar to my coach of a decade ago, Dan: She believes that establishing and maintaining these rules gets harder with increased speed, and that if we’re having trouble with any of it, to slow down and reorganize again at a lower gait. 

nbd just trying to figure out how to walk and chew gum at the same time…
(me, not the mare)

And in this manner, we essentially did a lesson of transitions. Which, frankly, is very different from my standard sort of ‘ride package,’ which any of you who watched any of those wall-mounted camera videos from this winter will know: I kinda tend to just get into gear and trot around continuously for 4-5 minutes at a time. 

Woodge didn’t necessarily think that was a bad or wrong thing… But she’s not sure it’s really helping me achieve what I want in Doozy’s responsiveness to the aids. Especially if I’m letting her kinda just blow me off (aka ‘settle onto the aids’) for the first few minutes. 

omg doozy it’s reeeeeeally not that exciting girlfriend!

She doesn’t think every single ride needs to be a military drill on precision and promptness or whatever… But, she also thinks that practicing these fundamentals is likelier to get us more bang for our buck at this moment in our journey. 

The lesson was almost entirely focused on small circles — occasionally yielding in or out, not a true spiral but just little feelings of it here and there — with relatively frequent changes of direction. Sometimes by traveling over a line of trot poles in the center of our figure of 8, sometimes not. And when Doozy had trouble with rushing the poles, nbd, just walk before we get to them, pass through, then trot again.

this is why we get demerits in our actual lessons, whoops

In a way, the ride reminded me a fair amount of allllll those ground pole sessions we did last summer. Remember the endless pictures of arrays of ground poles and little X’s with poles on takeoff and landing? And remember how we just rinsed and repeated again and again until it was boring? 

Yea, this ride was in some ways a lot like that. Which was a maybe timely reminder that… Ya know. Maybe I should do more of that again in my rides at home LOL. Hey, it’s worked for us before, right??

houston, we have achieved full** cross ties!!
(**post-ride (when tensions are lower) and still not in The Bay Where it Happened)

Anyway. Lessons like this can feel tedious and tiring and like we don’t have much to show for it… Except honestly I’m *HERE* for it. Doozy can be such a good girl, she WANTS to color inside the lines. The more clear and consistent and disciplined I can be with myself and my approach, the better she will go. 

It’s like how lessons with Dan ten years ago were frequently tagged with my “fail” label lol bc they often felt messy and hard. But that was literally by design, literally the point: these training sessions are supposed to expose the weak spots so that we can work on them, ya know?

perks of frequent volunteerism: at least my ill-conceived plans don’t always have to cost a lot!

And anyway, Doozy proved (yet again) that she benefits from consistent clear direction when she finally just walked onto the trailer like her normal easy self after the lesson, for the first time since our meltdown at Thornridge. 

Not that she’s been bad since then, per se. Obvi, if I’m still able to ship out on schedule and by myself lol… But she has recently required a little more convincing than previously, in a way I don’t love. But after this ride she was completely perfect and just walked right on, good girl!

So ya know. Cool. I can work with those parameters. Hopefully still with the context of getting out and about for fun adventures — of the more ‘bite sized’ variety. Next up: a suuuuuuuper low key trip to Loch Moy this weekend for another one of those “pick your test / clear rounds jumpers” days like we did last summer. This time maybe with some coaching, woohoo! And all for the bargain price of <$20 bc Loch Moy treats their volunteers like royalty. Yes Pls!

Whatever it takes, amirite? 

closing quietly

Happy new year, everybody!! And happy.... return to the post-holiday normalcy haha, and the coming months of long winter slowness ;) 

dooz got a new (consignment) halter for christmas too. tho, uh, i guess she's not actually a cob? throatlatch is hella short, and had to replace the crown with the longest spare in my collection.... 

We only really whispered goodbye to 2023 around here -- no big "Fireworks" (unless, of course, you count Charlie's ridiculous antics haha!). But it was satisfying in a subtle sort of way to close the year feeling like there's so much ahead of us yet to come. 

such a sweet face!

Doozy has made all the difference for me and my horsey habit, and I'm really looking forward to whatever may come -- especially if Charlie ever gets his act together too!

figured out how to be patient in the barnyard while we wait for riding buddies!

We finished the year with two more dressage lessons, in which we worked on the minutiae of lateral suppleness. Including finding a feeling of yielding from one side to the other, three steps this way, three steps that way, all while maintaining an uphill feeling. 

zen about the various routes up to the jump ring!

This exercise really helps Doozy tune in to what I'm saying, asking for, etc, without locking up against me. Tho, in practice I've learned that it only really works if she's already on the aids. 

basically ok with puddles too!

We also worked on practicing slowing way down to find balance, then pushing the contact forward. She tends to want to rush forward, but then loses balance and gets even more rush-y and spurt-y.

lol ignore the little spook (bc #birds) and check out what a pro she is about the stream!

My hope is that by being a bit more... assertive in slowing down to show her where the balance is, she'll start to recognize that as a more comfortable feeling.

back to the barnyard again!!

Finally, we did a nice little solo school in the indoor (with cross rails!), and also returned to the jump ring a couple times. She was a little excitable for the indoor school, tho. It's so important for me to canter this horse as often as possible bc otherwise that's kinda the result, turns out.

also got around to a little indoor school. the two poles on the right side are spaced at about 18', and compressed one-stride canter distance that she did nicely (tho somewhat wildly) off both leads

We don't canter every ride -- like when I'm pushing other boundaries like riding out in the fields or trying out the dressage ring again. And those boundaries are also equally important. But if it's been a couple rides since we've cantered, Doozy loses that lovely "jumpable" cadence in her canter that I want so desperately to keep fostering.

learning to love life alongside the trailer -- with snacks!!

Fortunately it always comes back quickly -- like when we were out in the jump ring with Amy and Punky, and she put down some truly lovely (and adjustable!) canter laps on both leads, including some very pleasant trips over a canter pole. We'll take it!

snacks inside the trailer too -- and standing on the correct side!

Last little item on the 'to-do' list for the year was another trailer practice session. This went just as smoothly as our first session, with the aid of much supplemental snacks.

all tucked in and ready for a little micro-trip!

I know that's maybe a controversial method, and maybe later down the line when we're in a higher stress situation where food is less interesting to the mare, we'll have trouble and you can tell me "I Told You So." And that's fine lol. For now, I want easy breezy low key practice.

then more snacks, this time practicing being tied too

She was able to go up and down the ramp, go into both sides of the trailer, with me leading her from both sides, and sending (sorta) from outside the trailer (tho it's easier when I lead her in). She also let me close up the ramps and doors, and take her for a little spin around the farm, after which she unloaded nicely to be tied next to the trailer for more #snacks. 

"reading the news"

I'm honestly pretty nervous and uncertain about how things will go when we eventually start adventuring. But... one of my resolutions with this horse is to Say Yes to opportunity. To let myself get pushed a little bit again, to lean in to learning and education.

Not necessarily so that we can "advance quickly" or "get there" or whatever, but because big lessons and clinics and horse shows and adventures are all major elements of how I define joy in my horsey habit. Elements that were notably rare in recent years.

spending new years eve at #TheGame with friends was pretty excellent haha

To quote from a recent audiobook (Give & Take by Adam Grant, for those interested), "The purpose of this test is served by the preparation." In other words, outcomes are derived more from the day in / day out preparation, practice, and studying in anticipation of a test or trial, rather than from the test itself.

you're a good girl, dooz

So saying "Yes" to adding big scary/exciting lessons, clinics, or shows to the calendar is the perfect way to help me keep refining that preparation. Where are our strengths, and what are our opportunities for growth? What needs to happen in order to be ready for xyz...? And if I don't feel ready for some big exciting upcoming thing, why not? What has to change for me to say yes instead of no?

grateful for the mild afternoon sunshine!

I don't necessarily know exactly what I want from 2024 yet -- there aren't any big blockbuster goals. Except that I want to feel like we could do anything, be ready for whatever may come. 

So we'll see what happens! Anyone else feeling similarly optimistic for the new year? Or maybe you DO have a really clear sense of where you want to go, or what you want to happen? 

well that was easy!

Have I ever mentioned that Fall is my favorite?? Gosh, I just love this time of year. The weather, but also all the activities!!!

it's Maryland 5* time @ Fair Hill!!

As has become habit in recent years, I take a whole bunch of time off work for the annual celebration of eventing that is the big 4* 5* at Fair Hill! This year, I had a super easy volunteer gig on Wednesday: acting as 'crossing guard' while the seven US Pan Am Team riders did their dressage tests in the main arena.  

the US Pan Am team ran through their dressage tests on Wednesday

It was neither a long day, nor a difficult job -- considering the only people really around on the Wednesday before the event are either involved in setting up / preparing, or are themselves riders / grooms / support crew / owners etc. So it wasn't exactly a difficult crowd lol.

when you have to ride your Pan Am horse at 11:30, but jog your 3* horse at 12:00....

Plus it got me on the grounds a day earlier than anticipated, to preview some of the shopping plus watch the jogs. If you're into that sort of thing, the whole 5* class, complete with full view of all outfits, is squeezed into little micro clips in the below 45sec video lol.

link to a super short compilation of all 26 5* entries at the jog

Anyway, again, was a short shift at the event for this day --- esp compared to today and tomorrow, when I'm doing Young Horse Champs stuff over longer days. Which meant it was perfect to get all puffed up with inspiration and whatnot, then go play with the red pony!

lolz not every horse is destined for the FEI jog strip!!

We've definitely got our little riding routine down pat, now. I stop by the indoor on my way down to the barn to arrange all our little exercises and obstacles, then go get the mare, and we proceed in more or less the same fashion. Bonus for this ride was that she was a bit less tense than last time, and we had the whole place to ourselves. 

cross rail is getting a little bigger lol

"Less tense" doesn't mean "Not tense" tho. The mare is still a little touch and go about this whole.... riding arrangement. But she's becoming quite reliable about the actual riding aids. Doozy is a whiz at steering, even when I have to escalate some aids to improve straightness in a turn, for example.

oooh we did a second cross rail too, in a new place, plus our standard trot poles

She's also got the trot transition figured out. Recall in our earliest rides (after restarting the restarting, tho), she'd often kinda spurt immediately from walk to canter. She seems to know now that, actually, we're just going to trot around a bit. I aim to ride a few symmetric figures off each rein, then find an early moment of softness for our first break. Rinse, repeat a few times. 

we've more or less stuck with this array -- i need to break out my #GridProQuo book for new inspiration!

I also still like to walk her through all the ground poles first, before trotting them. And we're finally getting to the point where there isn't much difference in how Doozy tackles the poles whether we're going toward or away from the door. 

We added a second cross rail for this ride, and "beefed up" the normal one, raising the poles a little bit and adding a ground line. We did each one twice, with her first tries being a little wiggly, but second tries very business like. She jumped the bigger X super cute, in a nice way where I actually added a little leg, tho in this ride we landed from everything in a trot. 

i think she's ready to not have to ride alone all the time

So, all that was left to do was a little canter in each direction. My canter aids really are not at all very good right now. My position isn't great for the normal feel I get on Charlie, I'm too perched, and my legs hang differently, so I'm kinda all over the place, sorta hoping she'll just get on with it. 

Luckily, so far, she does lol. Tho it still routinely takes us a second try to get the left lead. Nbd. 

well well well, what have we here??

So the 20th ride is in the books -- and I promise I'm done with counting them at this point lol! It is an important milestone, tho, and I really like the feeling I'm getting --- where, actually, the next big breakthroughs are probably going to come from me riding better vs Doozy magically figuring it all out. Feels like the ball is in my court, ya know? Which means.... lessons!!!

big Dooz Nooz!!! first time practicing with the trailer was a non event!

I'm working on a few options for getting lessons at home.... Considering part of why we moved to this barn in the first place back in 2017 was bc we had previously been shipping in for lessons. Things change tho, c'est la vie, but I'm hopeful we might figure something out. 

In the meantime, have trailer, will travel! Ya know, if the mare loads!

link to short video of doozy on a trailer!

And she loads!! I had exactly zero expectations about this first practice session, not gonna lie. We didn't really have trouble getting her into the trailer at the adoption facility, but it did take two (patient) people and a few long moments. 

I've shown her a trailer ramp once since then, without asking her to get on... And I dunno, I just kinda had this feeling that I should be ready to go slow, ya know? 

obvi food helps lol

But I walked Doozy up to the side door first, and showed her the food bucket I'd hung on her chest bar. She was obviously intrigued by that lol. So when I walked her up to the passenger side bay, she took a moment or two to think about life, but then decided to come right on in and get dat bucket. Good girl!!

She'd had a little trouble backing off the ramp when I first brought her home, and seems to do very nicely with a little light repetition. So I got her out of the bucket before she was quite finished, and asked for a careful, slow reverse off the trailer --- which she did quite nicely. We walked a little circle then represented to the ramp, and ta da!, she just walked right on in and finished her little meal. And again just sorta stood there snacking until I asked her to back up. 

all aboard!

Obvi bribing a horse with food isn't the same as "training" them (lol), but eh, I'm a big believer in positive experiences and associations. It's not clear what our first few outings will be, but my hope is to be partnered up with a seasoned horse + rider combo so Doozy will have a good role model and I'll have help if needed. 

We'll see, tho, all in good time!