Hips, Whips and No Sleep for Me

It's been a few days since I last posted, mostly because of the third thing in that list. I used to be a person who really loved getting up early, and did it easily; I still LIKE being up early, however I've been having a really hard time dragging myself out of bed lately. I think it's a combination of a lot of things. I love working in a barn, however I've realized more and more that when it's not your barn and you emotionally invest in it, it takes a toll. I always want the best for horses, regardless and whose they are. I also ALWAYS want to do a job as best I can. I think that hurts me sometimes; I want to fix all the naughty horses, I want the stalls perfect, I want things run neatly and orderly and for all the obvious bullshit that goes on the just be taken care of and nipped in the bud. But it's not my barn, I just work there, so none of this is up to me. I need to learn to take a step back sometimes and just let it go.

I'm also starting to worry about Ernie. I noticed he started having diarrhea yesterday afternoon when I brought them in around 2PM. There's a thousand different reasons why this could be happening, so I'm not going to panic just yet; he got some electrolytes last night to help with any dehydration, and I'm just going to keep an eye on him for a few days to see if it goes away on its own. He's maintained weight OK, but he's lost a LOT of muscle since the beginning of the summer. He's kept most in his neck, but his hindquarters have turned back into ski slops and he's got no back muscle to speak of. I haven't ridden him much this summer anyway; I've been all over the place myself, and right now I'm waiting to have him chiropracted. The lack of muscle in his butt makes it very obvious that he's got a hip out: even when he's standing square, his left hip is lower than his right (which is odd, because the right side is the one he off on). He's still been really lethargic, although he has maintained his appetite just fine. I ordered a tub of Probios for him; I've seen it do good for plenty of other horseowners and I'd like to see if it'll give Ernie the boost he needs to gain some weight.

Basically, I'm really ready to go back to school, at least in terms of anything horse related. I want my horses back in my complete control. I want to KNOW they are getting their supplements, know they have enough bedding, know they can get more hay at night if they need it. I enjoy checking in on my guys as many times a day as I want. I miss that, and I can't wait until I have that ability back again. (As a side note, it's not that they aren't cared for now: I'm actually pretty happy with the care they have now. The BO has done everything I've asked her to do, has bent over backwards to accommodate them, especially when Stella was injured, and has been really, really good about pretty much everything. But, as some of you know, it's never the same as if YOU were taking care of them...)

In other news, Stella's training has been progressing. I've been sitting on her more and more, just doing some simple walk/trot around the arena. I am in no way interested in pushing her; she's not even 4, she's got the rest of her life to work. Right now, I want her to enjoy learning and enjoy the time she spends working as much as possible. I could very easily push her and get her going quicker, and she'd probably be fine. She's smart, a definite "overacheiver" type personality. For example, we've been working on some basic introductions to lateral work and moving off the leg. Right now she only steers using direct rein, and I've been slowly introducing her to the idea of moving sideways off my leg, not just forwards. She totally gets it on the ground. She'll half pass, leg yield, shoulder in, turn on the forehand on the ground, but once you get in the saddle, she has a tendency to get stuck. She thinks "forward" too much. "But mom!" she says, "you said leg means forward! How can it mean forward AND sideways!?" So, I have to be very, very quiet to keep her from getting frustrated. I realized this last night, when I was asking for a leg yield under saddle, and all should wanted to do was go forward. Then she started to back up, and I gave a little kick, to which she responded with a little rear. Nothing major, but it was definitely her getting irritated and saying, "I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU WANT!"

So, in comes the whip. I carry a dressage whip with Ernie when I ride, but only because once he sees I have it, he knows it's time to go to work. I VERY rarely have to touch him with it. I decided to try it with Stella; I use it on the ground when I work her doing lateral work to give her a very clear driving aid. Why I didn't think to take it with me when I'm mounted I don't know, but I grabbed it last night. Boy, did that make a difference. All the sudden it was like the lightbulb came on. I think maybe she saw it, felt it, and realized "Oh, hey, I know this. We did this before!" I got a few nice steps of leg yield and hopped off and gave her MAD pats. It's amazing what a little change of attitude can do. Only a few months ago, I probably would have assumed she was being stubborn and gotten mad or frustrated myself. But I went through a serious attitude adjustment with Ernie, and have tried to keep that with all horses I work with.