Day 31

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

I woke up this morning pretty sore and bruised so I decided not to ride and instead wanted to spend some time getting Marley used to another rider.  Mike has been learning about working with Marley throughout this whole process, but mostly about working around him, leading him, etc.  He has not attempted to get on him at all, or even deal with tacking and un-tacking, so I decided we would take it slow today and keep it very positive. 

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

It was really cold and windy again which is frustrating because it has been so nice, but we took advantage of the empty barn and let Marley run around for a bit when we first got there.  I stood in the middle of the ring with Marley and let him gallop, but I wasn't running around with him as usual.  Marley is very playful and after a few failed attempts at getting me to run, he would canter over to Mike who was in the corner talking with Katherine and stop just short of him and snort.  Mike got the hint, and Marley played a little chase with him which I think was a great way to start out the session. 

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Since Marley hasn't had the western saddle on in some time, I wanted to lunge him first to let him get the feel for it again before Mike got on.  He did just fine, and I was actually really glad I lunged him because I could see the progress he has made in regard to his fitness and muscling.  He was able to hold a balanced canter both directions on a 20 meter circle without the round pen panels to lean into.  I was really pleased, because even though I'm posting each day and it helps me to recognize when progress is being made, it is still sometimes hard to see him every day and notice changes like this. 

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

I lunged Marley for less than 10 minutes before Mike started working with me.  I don't really believe that exhausting my horse will make him better behaved, and the last thing I wanted to do was poop Marley out before Mike (who basically doesn't know how to ride) got on him.  I wanted to keep this session short and very positive to keep Marley engaged and thinking.  First we started by having Mike walk all around Marley touching the saddle, making noises on the leathers, etc.  Then we added the mounting block.  Marley immediately got that Mike standing up there was different then his usual  routine, but we went about our business and worked around him until he relaxed.  When Marley was standing quietly for Mike to put weight in the stirrups on both sides of the saddle, I instructed him to swing his leg over and take a seat!  Marley was such a good boy and even though he was obviously apprehensive, he stood quietly while Mike put his feet in the stirrups (I had them at jockey length for him.... sorry babe!)  We walked around a bit and Marley gave me funny looks for being on the ground with him while Mike was up on his back, but he never reacted and I was really happy with that.  After Mike dismounted and Marley received lots of praises, we moved the mounting block to the other side of him and had Mike get on once more.  Marley was calm once again and we stood for a minute before Mike dismounted.  We finished there and Mike un-tacked him.  I was proud of both of them.

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

I also worked on putting a bridle with a bit on Marley today.  Again, I didn't want to do anything crazy, just have him accept the bit and then I would take it off.  He has had a bit in his mouth before, but that was day 6 and 7 if I remember correctly, so I knew he would be a little rusty.  He wasn't horrible, I basically just stood with him until he brought his head down and relaxed before taking each new step.  He would stick his head up really high, but thankfully he isn't ridiculously tall, and I would wait it out, rewarding him for bringing it down.  When he took the bit, he chewed on it for a minute and once he stopped I took it off.  Next time I will let him work in the round pen with it to get a little better feel before I start adding rein.  Stay tuned! 

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

To close, I wanted to talk briefly about Marley's reaction yesterday and my resulting fall as there has been a lot of discussion and debate about it.  First, I don't know that I would have been dumped if we hadn't been casually walking around on a loose rein at the end of a ride.  I may have, but it's hard to say.  Second, never did I say anywhere in yesterday's post that ALL horses (mustangs specifically) are terrified of the same things.  With animals there is never an "all", "none", "always", or "never" statement.  Marley was spooked by a helicopter and I wasn't prepared for his reaction.

Photo by Katherine Payne Photography

This blog is meant to document and honestly represent my personal journey with a mustang that was randomly chosen for me for this competition.  I have never worked with a wild horse, as I have stated in previous posts, and I have no desire to tell anyone how to work with their own horses.  There are virtually hundreds of ways to get an end result in training, and with my background I have chosen to stick with a method that I truly believe in and feel represents my respect and love for these animals.  I don't know where we will be at the end of the 90 days, but so far Marley has been an absolute gift in our very busy lives.  I plan to continue to write about him honestly from my personal view with a perspective of the training methods I use.  I appreciate the support of friends, family, and readers who have followed us thus far and hope you will continue to follow, comment, and ask questions.  We are all in this program for no other reason than we love what we do, and we love the animals that we work with, regardless of methodology or discipline.