Update on the kid

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hobbyhorse23

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Yes, I'm sorry, still no pictures! Skip reading here if that annoys you.
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I just wanted to share that I've had both horses back in regular work with the sudden arrival of decent weather and enough daylight and am quite pleased with the progress Turbo is making now that he's getting regular lessons. I had my fingers crossed as I truly believed after doing all this stuff at liberty and in-hand for the last year and a half that he was going to fly through training with the equipment but didn't want to be overconfident or jinx myself.
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After our first ground-driving session which I wrote about here, I did another short session in the bridle walking by his side and then took him to Happ's a few days later with Kody for a schooling weekend and introduced him to the dressage arena, cones, big horses driving carriages, and the completely different feel of a CDE versus the breed shows he's been at before. I'll post pictures of that later when I get them online. Short version is he did very well for having a LOT thrown at him at one time and got in a pretty good ground-driving session despite a lot of distractions he really wasn't ready for.

Since he's been home I've started him on arena work in both long and short reins, alternating and working on different things each day. We tried moving to the double-lunge and found it confuses him terribly as he's so VERY sensitive about responding to pressure on the reins and on his body with changes of bend (as he was taught to be) but we did get the initial bucks out of the way when the outside double-lunge line first went under his tail. I was happy about that as until now he's just accepted everything and I wanted him to act up a bit so I could correct him. He objected with some annoyed double-barrel kicks, I gave him a firm but unbothered "ahhhht! Trot on" and he learned that it wasn't a big deal and the right response was to move forward calmly. It didn't take him long to get it!

He's awesome about things around his feet and legs and has learned that when he backs up without permission and steps on a dangling line he'd better step right back off it calmly or pick up the foot when I tap it with the whip and say "Foot." Mostly I just let him figure things out for himself since he's a thinking kind of horse and learns better if he puzzles it out with a little help. I've been very pleased with how well he's responded to each new "tangle" he gets into and it took him less than no time to learn to bend properly into corners and stay straight on straight lines. Heck, our biggest fight was about not trying to duck out the open gate but after he gave in the first day he hasn't tried it since!

Initially I would take off his tack as a reward when I could tell he'd had enough but now after just a week's worth of real work he's gone from glad to have it off to disappointed. Last time I did that he gave me sad puppy eyes, tried to get me to put the bridle back on and when that didn't work he lined up in front of me and tried to get me to work him without the tack!
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That was the last time I used untacking as a reward.
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Now he's proud to ground-drive to and from the arena and untack at the grooming station just like Kody does.
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He's been all-around easy to train. He got a little hot the first time I asked him to do a prolonged trot instead of just a few strides of it but quickly came under control and shocked me by going on the bit and giving me a few strides of nice round contact on his very first time. I reviewed some of my driving books and was reminded of the importance of standing quietly before being put to the cart and went out the next day with that lesson in mind, but it's like he read my lesson plan and never put a foot wrong once whoa'd. He's still a silly kid and does silly kid stuff like deciding the southwest corner of the arena is going to kill him, but he only seems to do each thing once and if I remember to break it down and clicker-train him for the small steps he gets over it very quickly.

Still to do of course is lunging him with the full harness on (probably some more bucking there as the breeching flops), dragging the tire, learning to sit on the breeching, using the shaft trainers (he's already pulled a travois of large pine branches at liberty and couldn't have cared less) and being led in the cart with a helper. Again, we've already done a lot of the cart work at liberty and by being ponied behind Kody so I'm anticipating that to be totally anticlimactic. He mostly needs to learn how the different parts of the harness feel and what they do and then we can hitch.

Kody is very jealous and hurt watching me work the baby so I have to keep reassuring him that I don't prefer the other horse, I'm "bring along his pair partner." This is all for KODY, as far as I want him to know!
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You can tell it's bad when I let them switch places and Kody starts lunging himself around me in circles wearing an invisible bitting rig. He hates lunging but feels the need to prove he can do it better than Turbo can.
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I'll be taking both boys to the beach in August with friends and Turbo has his first driving trial in late September so we're going to keep on keeping on. May and June were ground-driving and basic arena skills, July will be basic cart work with "combat training" on the long-lines and other outdoor work, August more advanced stuff and some fitness work, then a light driving trial in September and time to slack off again over the winter. I'm so excited!!
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Kody's doing well too with his remedial in-hand work (bringing him up to the level Turbo's at when it comes to lateral work off the bridle) and so far seems to be staying sound despite regular driving. He gets very sore very quickly if I let him overdo it but he's now getting the idea that if he LISTENS
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and walks instead of running everywhere he doesn't get as sore and then Mommy will drive him again the next day.
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Silly goof! He's being a champ and a half about ponying Turbo off the cart though, and T is much better about it since getting gelded.

Leia
 
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Bravo!! It sounds like he is really coming along nicely and getting some great exposure! Keep up the good work and thanks for letting us tag along
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Angie
 
Great report, Leia! I look forward to seeing the boy full-up and ready to roll down the trail! :D
 
Great update on T & K! It is fun to hear of your progression with Turbo. He is going to be an incredible driving horse for you, it sounds like. I love the fact he has a good work ethic and a level head. That probably has a bit to do with how he has been handled in the last couple of years.

You are forgiven for lack of pics. Your writing skills paint a nice picture in my mind.
 
Cool!

With his obvious "stressor" as bucking, I would definitely use a kicking strap on him (which I know you are going to do....written more for the masses reading.)

Myrna
 
Thanks guys!
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Minxiesmom said:
I love the fact he has a good work ethic and a level head. That probably has a bit to do with how he has been handled in the last couple of years.
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He's bred for this and would have been great for anyone, but I do think the sheer amount of time I've spent on him has paid off. He had some confidence issues, stifle issues, no idea how to use himself...none of those are in evidence now, and all without any stress on his legs or mind.
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I've had a lot of fun "learning to teach" with this guy and keep finding things I have to go back and apply to Kody. I'm becoming a much better driver through all this ground-work!

RhineStone said:
With his obvious "stressor" as bucking, I would definitely use a kicking strap on him (which I know you are going to do....written more for the masses reading.)
You bet. I don't know that he bucks, particularly, but he's always been a fear kicker and it's taken me two years and a lot of confidence-building games to get him less reactive in that hind end. I always felt it was something he'd grow out of but it was a big problem as a yearling!
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You couldn't brush his tail without putting your kneecaps in danger.
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As the "everyone's out to get me" omega horse confidence issues have improved so has the defensive kicking and he's never reacted that way to harness straps, thank God. I've been tangling his legs in ropes and straps on purpose since he was a baby and he'll stand there for hours without moving waiting for rescue when he gets caught in fencing or whatnot. I'm actually quite pleased that he's gotten enough confidence to saucily "talk back" about something!
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There was not a trace of fear or stress in the kicking he did on the double-lunge, just a little bop then when it didn't quit he put his ears back and "let it know he meant business."
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A couple quick kicks above the height of his head, my correction, and he immediately settled and went "Oh, that's just equipment? Okay." As long as it has to do with driving, he's thrilled to learn it!
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Kody never goes without a bucking strap as he's always been a high-spirits bucker and Turbo will continue that tradition because if he ever does kick in fear, he'd be the kind who would frighten himself hitting the cart and then go crazy trying to kick away the bad thing behind him.
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I intend to make sure that never happens.

The only thing I'm worried about is that I can't use kicking straps on a tandem leader or when driving a pair!
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Leia
 
Love reading your wonderful description of Turbo's and Kody's progress but I would still like pictures... I will try to be very patient.

Your story reminds me of when I trained a large pony to drive - back before you were born. My riding horse had more trouble with the training than the pony did - especially when I put HIS saddle on the pony. And I would pony the pony on trail rides too.

Can't wait for your next installment.

Mary
 

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