Love This Pic

 She appears to me to be so gentle & engaged. 

I don't usually see her face from this angle.... ❤️

WICKED SMAHT PONY

 I hadn't taken any video of attaching a lead line to her halter and letting her go (or driving her out).... was not 100% sure I wanted to do this as an exercise - but it IS generally effective in helping them learn to give to pressure, so I thought it'd give it a quick try.

Results? She stepped on the line literally once (w/left foot) and never, ever did it again, with either foot. I took video today (the second time trying it, and just had her going at (slow) walk as she followed me... so, maybe not dramatic, but you can see a number of times she purposefully places her legs to avoid stepping on it.

Working toward the Hind End Legs

 She's just so mellow, but I am going very slow with touching the hind legs.

Trying to make everything comfortable and associated with good stuff. Prior to this I did (earlier in the day) a couple more "tests" to confirm where the threshold is. At 1:16 in this vid I had my hands on her inner back leg (uncomfortable), held it (for under threshold), and then rewarded her.

Working on increasing that time. without reaction and we'll see as her threshold increases!

Also BTW was going to edit out the beginning but she was funny investigating the phone.
Trying to reward more with scratches than treats, but treats are immediately effective. Also, I am starting to "cluck" with a treat. Not going full-throttle into clicker training, but a cluck is immediate and there are benefits to that.

FINALLY, in my last post I used the term "softening at the poll"... Dressage people and technical people, please forgive me...! I'm asking for relaxation (in the neck primarily) but it isn't truly "at the poll". No one called me out on this (thanks) but I realized later I am an idiot. As I often do.

Pressure and Release at the Poll, and Advancing the Touching

 Just itty bitty beginnings of applying small pressure to her poll amidst some comforting support.. She is however also using it as an avoidance! That's OK -- for now.

Same thing, but now I am moving my overall touching toward her rear, where it gets more sensitive. Yesterday I did brush out her tail, no problem. But touching the legs (inside, particularly) elicits signs of uncertainty/apprehension, and a couple times she lifted her leg into a "prepare-for-a-kick" position. Must go slow and stop at the earliest sign of her uncertainty.

If nothing else it is fun to watch Tori catch flies.

Looking for Her Reactive Self - and her name: "KAIAH"!

 I finally decided on a name: Kaiah, which means "pure" in Native American, or "small but wise".

My friend tells me "Kai" in Hawaiian means the sea, which is also perfect since having this horse has so much to do with my brother Dave who loved surfing, the ocean, and Hawaii.... and I am planning to mostly call her KAI. Maybe it will be Kai and Kai alone....

The other day I took a lot of ugly video showing my attempts at amping her up enough to see some energy and reactivity. Included within this is 1) keeping her engaged and interested, 2) keeping her reassured, 3) when directing her, being consistent with my own body language (you will see I am not! - Thus an area to work on/be more mindful of).

As a note I would generally not recommend you go this far, i.e. get this pushy and fast, with a new mustang. She is just so mellow and basically unafraid that I felt it was OK to really push her to see what is "inside" - she IS a wild horse - and though it's tempting to think of her as domestic, I don't want to be working with the feet and all of a sudden have her feel her oats, and not be prepared. I also want to give her an idea about me; that I can ask, direct, and drive. But most importantly, that I can stop and immediately lower my energy (Sharon Wilsie* says "go to zero" - a term I like.)

Starting with scratches and some reassurance and relaxation.

General communication - or trying to get some.

You can see her confusion in some of these that I need to be more clear 

and position myself better, 

At same time I want to be a safe and comfortable place. 

I plan to go back now to lesser things: 1) being able to touch her all over including hind legs (the most sensitive), and eventually 2) get down to the feet... to hold my hands there, pick them up, hold, and let down. Might be a tricky one! Have watched some video and need to re-watch and see what might work. Most use ropes. 3) Giving/softening to pressure, starting at the head/poll. 

*Sharon Wilsie, "Horse Speak, Conversations with Horses in Their Own Language"

Accomplishment: Mane!

Got the whole thing done yesterday. Like other things so far, easier than I thought. My only failure was not getting better pics of the "before"... it was pretty hideous!

Happy to eat hay while I worked. Only had to cut a few small bits.

Left before:

Left after:

Right before:

Right after:

Overall:

 

These Guys Come Itchy!!

 Great asset: the itchiness. 

Once she learned I could affect it, she kind of didn't leave me alone. Halter went on: first offering. Neck and butt scratches: she is following me. 

Herein however will be my first challenge. I prefer to stay "small" and use small cues. Once she started following and seeking scratches she was getting into "my space". I leaned toward her: nothing; I raised hands: nothing; I raised hands and waved them: nothing! Uh-Oh.... Decided I need a tool. Using some of the property-marker flags that I put along the back of the pen. When she leaned in too close I raised it and fluttered it until she took one (reluctant) step back; I immediately lowered my hand and gave her a release/reward. She licked and chewed. I did this a few times and will clearly need to keep doing it.

Leaning In:

Haltering:

Flagging:

Great Progress

She let me scratch her and even seemed to invite me to come up to the left lower eye lid where there is some skin loss.

(SEE THE Video in addition to the pic!)

Saturday (caturday)

 A few things from yesterday

This vid is as close as Taco has gotten. 

He prefers the opposite side of the house as below!

Glimpse of a First Touch

 Friday, the first day after arrival, she curiously nosed me. By the time I got the phone out she was about done, but you get a glimpse.

The Livestock Pavilion, BLM, and Loading a Horse (if you are curious)

 Here is a video mid morning. My mare is the main grey you see. 

Horses are divide into separate pens and when their new owner arrives with trailer, they are separated and eventually guided down a chute into the trailer

Video

Days 1-4 with 6782, in brief!

Difficult getting caught up when the last two weeks on Cape Cod involved a big party, hosting out-of-towners, cleaning/clearing condo of three lives' worth of furniture, clothing, belongings... stuff!...  packing and moving south (with dog and cat), the drive (with bad RA), the unpacking (not finished), buying a truck, adopting and picking up an untouched horse, attending to commitments (doctors, volunteering at a Baroque dressage event), and revising this blog! 

#6782 in the pens at the Southeastern Livestock Pavilion in Ocala (FL) after the trip from Idaho

And, difficult to be inside here typing when - as you might understand - I'd rather be out in the pen with the horse!

So far I have learned about her:

• Middle of the herd; not dominant: from observing her in the pens at pickup place.

Here is a video, after she was separated.

• Reasonable: got off trailer very uneventfully; no panic, just a relieved look like "wow, that's over..." and a slow walk around the pen to explore...

• Not needy: no obvious concerns about being alone (there are no horses at all in my immediate vicinity).

• Cool as a cuke in general: she cocked a leg within 10 minutes of getting off the trailer. Even laid down the first night (though did not remain in that prone position for long). Has not called, whinnied or cried out once.

• Prefers her back to the woods, against the fence (her comfort place), contrary to my predictions (thought she'd be fearful of the thick FL oak/pine/plametto/VINEY shrubbery/woods).

• Knows nothing of grain, treats, soaked alfalfa cubes. Still yet to take a lick of a horse cookie. This is no surprise as they have apparently only had alfalfa in holding.

• Prefers crappy FL "coastal" hay over timothy or alfalfa cubes - or the green grass!!

• Curious but not anywhere near as curious about me as she is of Tori.

• Tori is a Superstar. She has provided inroads to the horse, easing introductions with playful interest but also respect. Some of it is funny.

• She can be playful. The second day (Friday) she put her foot into the tub and started sloshing around! Then she bit the edge of the bucket for a bit. 

First roll in the pen:

This is Friday morning, after arrival Thursday around 3:30 pm. She allows us to be pretty close. 

I think it is time for me to go get some interaction!! More later.

MUSTANG 6782

 (Thursday, October 19, 2023; from my post on Facebook): I am picking this girl up at the Southeast Livestock Pavilion in Ocala FL in two hours. She is an untouched (un-gentled, unbroke, wild) mustang from the Devil's Garden Horse management Area (BLM). She is approx 3 years old, and 14.1h.

I won her August 7 (David Harmon's birthday - Pretty sure I am Living Like Dave). Currently she is "6782".... name TBD.

Hopefully my excitement will continue to override the current pains from RA and asking too much of a decrepit body...

I must try and practice what Zante taught first and foremost: Slow. Easy. Soft.

It's going to be awesome!

Background: There are a number of ways to adopt a mustang. All info is on the BLM (Bureau of Land Management) site here. My method was through the Online Corral, which is on that main page, on the right; scroll down. Or go directly here. There is a volume of info/links on mustangs within the main page. Statistics on populations etc would be in the Program Data page.

The Online Corral offers available horses through an online bidding process, which is held a number of times a year. There are many more horses (not listed in the Online Corral) in holding in various holding areas (see the main site for info... there are holding areas, and there are Herd Management Areas or HMAs. Those in holding have been gathered and are either waiting to go into auction or are being held for other reasons. The HMAs are designated areas within BLM lands that maintain wild herds. Each herd tends to have certain characteristics because they don't tend to intermingle with other herds and over time the populations exhibit characteristics of their original members, such as Spanish, draft, quarter horse etc.... Herds will exhibit the original characteristics but also become influenced by escaped or loose horses brought by pioneering ranchers. 

My girl is from Devil's Garden HMA (California). For some reason it is not listed on the site (??)! I learned of them through a Facebook group. Attached is a map where you can see the DG HMA, - but no link! You can see a nearby HMA: Red Rock Lakes description here.

P.s., I decided to simply use/add to this "old" blog.

Feel free to peruse the paintings etc. that follow... I am not planning to be back to painting for awhile (my tiny garage/prior art studio is now horse supply/hay storage, which does not lend itself to debris-free painting. If I decide to go mixed-media, and want texture e.g., hay bits, chaff, dust, debris, then I may change my mind..).

I have a mural project that will take me through February and then hope to have a few months "off" to do nothing but play with Ms. 6782!