The Game

On a sunny, windy day, I trudged out to the pasture in muck boots, rope halter in hand. Robin graciously hung out in the airlock and watched as I picked my way to Sham in the far corner of the pasture. He was nibbling at the first real grass blades coming up.

As I hoped, he picked his head up and walked right to me. I remained relaxed and let him sniff my hands and jacket. After a few moments I stepped toward his withers just a bit to scratch his neck. Success. Then I reached for the withers and he stepped away. I stood up and stared.

And thus the game began. I did my best to slowly stay within 10 feet of him and stared right at him until he turned to face me. Then I would release the pressure. If his eyes drifted somewhere else, I applied more pressure. He didn't like it, but he wasn't totally bothered by it either. What bothered him was my persistence. I never let him rest. If he moved, I followed and stared. He only received release when he would come up to me.

He figured the rules out rather quickly (he is a very smart horse) and obliged me by coming up and getting a few pets. In the beginning he didn't hang out too long. He'd investigate for as long as he felt necessary, then he'd wander away. I simply stared and followed. A few times he got agitated enough to run around somewhat vigorously and even do some rolling. I kept the pressure on. He kept coming to me. Eventually we got in some nice rounds of big pets and lots of praise, but no treats. Not yet.

After one such round I offered him the rope halter. I had unclipped the lead rope and draped it around my shoulder. I thought this might be easier for me to work with and less of a threat to Sham. It was. He let me slide the halter over his nose with no trouble and even lowered his head a bit so I could tie it on.

And then he walked off again. No big deal, I thought, I had scored the first point. So I followed and stared as he wandered around and eventually settled at the round bale. This caused me my first problem. The bales are big, difficult to move around, and there are always other horses there. And Sham was not uncomfortable enough with my staring to not eat. He didn't like it, but he kept eating. So my first thought was to get him off the bales, and I think I started doing this a bit too aggressively. I could move him, but he would usually present his backside to me. I didn't feel comfortable with that. It was supposed to be me making him uncomfortable, not the other way around.

Robin could see how this was playing out from her chilly place at the fence. She suggested that when he is on the bale I approach his head/neck in a very non-threatening, head down manner. This worked much better. I could get him to move, but he was not physically threatened by me.

So the game continued. Partially on the bale, and partially off the bale. Eventually I got him to stay in the open area, and I felt much better about this. I initially thought the open space would be the hardest, but I came to take comfort when we were isolated. I could be much more effective, and he was much more uncomfortable. He wandered over to a salt lick, perhaps thinking it was as safe as a bale.

Not quite. I could casually walk up to him, pet his neck, pet his withers. When he pulled away, I stared. When he came back, I smiled and relaxed and looked down. When he went for the salt lick again Robin suggested I try to clip the rope on. I took hold of the halter, gently pulled his head up, and clipped it on. As I led him to the gate I could tell he was exhausted. Not physically exhausted, but mentally exhausted.

As a reward I worked to keep things easy. We stood in the airlock and gave him pets and some grain. He was a little pully and fidgety, but I would disengage his hindquarters and then he would stand facing me. After just a few minutes of this I put him back in the pasture. He was still a tad fidgety, but I got him to stand and he was very quiet as I took off his halter.

At that point relief must have swelled through all 15.3 hands of him. He took off in a gallop, charged past one round bale, and then leaped over another pile of hay that was at least 2.5 feet tall and equally as round. He cleared it by more than a foot and continued to blow off some steam in the pasture by running some very tight circles. It was fun to watch.

Since I was able to halter him, and then later on clip the lead rope to the halter, I consider the score to be Brian 2, Sham 0. Of course, the game took a full 70 minutes. I hope the next one is shorter.

After the Dentist

While I was up in Wisconsin for the Birkebeiner, Robin graciously took care of Sham for the vet visit (I really have an amazing wife). He was mostly good for the appointment, but still I worried that he would hold onto a few bad memories when I went out to see him next. Afterall, I've only had him for about two and a half weeks.

But when I trudged out to the pasture today he looked up and came right over to me. I had carrots in my pocket and a bucket of grain mixed with alfalfa. He was more than happy to venture into the airlock for snacks. And after much chomping and petting, I haltered him up with very little difficulty (he only pulled away once).

Today he led like a dream. It was almost as if the dental visit never happened. But after he was inside for about 60 seconds the worries came flooding back. So I concentrated on our leading exercises. We did lots of easy, short, sharp turns and I gave him many pets and words of encouragement. Within a few minutes we had some nice and relaxed head carriage going. We slowly worked into a few of our other groundwork drills, and I was back to feeling surprised at how well he behaved given his past visit indoors.

We finished up our evening with some grooming and tacking. He is getting more comfortable with the tie stall and isn't creeping forward nearly as much. And he picks his feet up like he's standing on hot coals. It is amazingly fast. Sometimes it is so fast I'm not ready for it.

After the untacking and final grooming I left him in the pasture as the sun dropped in the west. He turned down the come-ons of one of the pasture mares and hung out with Robin and I instead. Sham is turning into quite the companion. I can't wait to see where we will go this spring.

Forward and Backward

On Saturday we woke up nice and early, and after our leisurely routine of coffee and breakfast, we headed off to the barn. It was super quiet when we arrived. Only Cathi, the owner, was there. We chatted for a few minutes and then Robin and I walked out to get our respective horses. The plan today was for me to give Sham a break from riding (it has become so abundantly clear that the bit/headstall is really irritating his long teeth, so no more riding until those are floated) and do some ground work while Robin got in a nice bareback ride.

When I entered the pasture Sham came right to me from the round bale. I gave him a little treat and went to put the rope around his neck so I could halter him. He slowly walked off, though. That was a first. I got some more grain out of my pocket and pursued him slowly. Again I could get quite close, but I had no luck with the rope or halter. And now he started running off with more purpose.

We got to see Sham, head of the herd, in full action. He is a rather smart fellow. Of course he is big and athletic and has no trouble staying away from me. But he figured that wasn't quite enough, so he started moving all the other members of the herd. It was particularly interesting to watch him use Leonard, another bay gelding, and Star, a red mare, as blockers. He continually placed them directly between himself and me. If I wasn't so mad at him at the time I would have been more impressed.

Robin was watching all this from the airlock with a very happy and passive Steen. She kept giving pointers, but there really was nothing I could do. I tapped out and let Robin have a try. She had a similar experience as mine. Though in time, her experience allowed her to get closer to him. But only closer, she didn't get him. Finally she came up with the bright idea to lure him into the airlock with some grain. This worked like a charm. And once he was away from the herd, he was back to his happy, relaxed, and semi-submissive self.

So, not a great start to the barn day. Once inside the arena I quickly made a mental check of all the ground work tools I had (yielding, moving hindquarters, stopping, backing, all the while being calm and assertive) and got to work on showing him that I was the head of the herd, and I wasn't going to make it painful either.

And he was pretty good. I could make him move and have him calmly stand. Occasionally he would stop paying attention, but a few quick disengages and the periodic pop on the butt brought him right back to me. During the course of our work he became more flexible and supple. He was responding particularly well to me turning into him. He still has a tendency to get his head out in front of me a bit, but he is yielding much more willingly, and I can turn more sharply and demand more. I took this as a good sign, and so we stopped for the day. We had a brief, non-threatening session of grooming, and I gave him some more food and put him back outside. No pain. At least I hope not.

At about that time Robin was finishing her very nice ride on Steen and said I could ride if I wanted. I threw a saddle on and climbed aboard. He was a dream. He is neck-reining so well right now, and I would use a little bit of leg if I wanted a tighter turn. We did a lot of walk-trot circles and figure eights. There was one semi-spook when some snow slid off the roof, but we both made it through. Those moments are good for both of us. Steen learns that nothing will happen to him, and I gain a little confidence in keeping my seat when a horse moves in a short, quick burst that I'm not really ready for.

So in the end Steen saved the barn trip for us. He was perfect, and we both had great rides. After we put him out to pasture we brought a few more treats out to Sham, who again came right up to us and showed no intention of running away (of course, he could clearly see I didn't have a rope). I'm really hopeful that after he gets his teeth done he'll resort back to being the willing fellow I've seen glimpses of.

First Ride

After sleeping in and having a great morning ski with Robin, we went over to the barn to keep working with Sham and Steen. Robin went out yesterday and rode Steen and also put in some time with Sham. He had a small cut on his leg from the trailer ride, and Robin made sure that was starting to heal up. Then she did some leading and ground work with him. So that was the plan for today, too. Neosporin and ground work.

Before coming inside we turned Sham loose in the airlock so he could meet Steen. There was some quiet sniffing and a little bit of chase at the trot. But it was mostly uneventful. It turns out my horse has one of those indifferently dominant personalities. He is just kind of in charge, but he doesn't force things on others. I think that is a good way to be.

Unfortunately, that personality, and his previous training as a ranch horse, mean he's not that good on the ground. He is a bit of a barger. I can usually make him back up, but the leading around in the indoor arena was very hit or miss today. It is true there were three other horses getting ready to go out for a ride, and he's also still getting used to things. But it made for some tough moments. I'm not the most effective horse handler yet. When I ask them to do something that they really know how to do, then I'm OK. Almost good, really. But when we're both in the gray area, I'm not so in charge anymore.

Still, with some coaching from Robin I think we made a little progress. And with that small progress we stopped short and put him in the tie stall. With some grooming and then putting Steen's saddle on him he calmed right down. He is definitely good at standing quietly and being patient. Steen's saddle fit him quite nicely, which is good, because I think I want the same one. It fits me nicely, too. And the bridle with the loose ring snaffle went into his mouth much more easily than the curb the ranch guys were using.

Once we knew all the tack worked out, I looked at Robin and asked if we should put him back out. She kind of smiled and said, "well, we could ride him." This was not the initial plan. We wanted to get him settled and not ask too much of him in his new place. But I had to admit he was looking pretty settled.

Not settled enough for me to jump on him, though. OK, that's not totally true. He was settled down enough for that, but I had not fully settled down after our fumblings at the ground work. So Robin got on and they did some very nice walking and trotting. I watched and held the very unsettled Steen. Maybe it was the game of chase between him and Sham earlier, but Steen was not super happy to be hanging out with us today.

After Robin's brief ride I lengthened the stirrups and climbed on.


He is very good under saddle. Super relaxed and not worried about a thing. He stands well. He flexes to the bit well. He stops well. And he's got big, energetic gaits. He will be really fun to work with. It will just take some time for me to get used to him. I kind of think he's almost used to me already. Except with the leading part.

I Have a Horse

For weeks I have been shopping for a horse. I met Sham on Sunday and decided he was the one for me. He was up at the Meyer Horse Co. He is a 15.3 hand bay Quarter Horse. He'll turn 9 this March. Most of his life was spent as a working ranch horse in Wisconsin and later Iowa. Although there are some cows at Skriver, most his new life will be spent cruising around the trails. I think he'll like it.

Here is a little video from our test ride. Nothing too exciting.

This afternoon he was delivered to us. He came off the trailer with a little hop, and within moments, he was almost totally at ease with his new home. He rolled in the indoor arena. He ate an apple core. He ate apple-flavored wormer, which wasn't quite as good as the apple core. He was groomed. And he was really good for all of it. Surprisingly good. I knew he was relaxed when I met him, but this was more than I had hoped for. And through it all, he remained attentive and inquisitive.

After the indoor fun we took him out to the airlock and turned him loose. He sniffed many a nose over the fence, but none of the horses showed any signs of concern or aggression.

So we opened the gate to the pasture and let them mingle. Again he seemed right at home. He trotted over to the salt lick like he had been eating off it all year. He even pushed one of the mares away when she came close. Of course, others pushed him around a bit, but nothing big.

Over the next few weeks I'll let him settle in, start doing some ground work exercises, figure out his tack, and then start riding. It should be a great adventure.

Check out Robin's blog for another take on the arrival.