Cantering in the Arena—at Last

I know, I know, this is way overdue. We did a little cantering last year in the arena and a little the year before, but I never worked on it steadily enough to get a solid transition. I decided to canter a lot on trail this summer, and I did. We loved it. I figured once we got back in the arena, that it would be easy—wrong. Reality couldn’t be further from the truth. It was just as hard as ever to get him to canter.

I didn’t use the clicker on the…

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The Challenges of the Arena



This year, I had to start my arena work a little early because I have sole custody of the dog. No more running straight out to the barn after work to ride before sunset for me. Well, September isn’t so bad. I have enough time to ride one horse on a quick trail ride. that horse is Cruiser. Two weeks ago, Cole began his arena work.



The first evening, I decided to try the outdoor arena. Usually, there are horses turned out in it in the evening, and… Continue

I only had enough daylight to ride Cruise on trail. We went with my boyfriend and Starry. It was a very nice ride.

When I got back, I decided to try the outdoor arena with Cole. I haven’t ridden in there in over a year. It is huge and Cole gets very strange in it. I started by leading him until he settled down. When we got to the far end, he got wild and was bucking and rearing. He did this a number of times. I just sighed. This is what happened with him last year on the far end. I…

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Best Laid Plans

 

My sister and I were planning long rides on this holiday weekend.  Saturday morning, we headed out on the first one with Cole and Ranger—and when we started trotting, Ranger was lame.  Our hearts fell.  It’s bad enough to have a lame horse, but it is way worse when the horse is on the older side.  The anxieties are multiplied a hundred times.  Could this be the big one?  Is it something chronic that will limit his use? 

 

We watched him and…

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