Top of the world

So it is now super late and I have been horsing around all day long! This morning I worked with Magpie for about an hour and a half. She is learning really fast but today she decided that she wanted to be the boss. She was a little challenging but nothing worse then an old moody barrel mare. I  am sure she has sat in her stall and wondered how she ended up here and what in the world are we trying to do with her. I did get her to flex her nose around and start actually using the bridle.
This afternoon was so hot. I worked a clients horse and then Spade. The clients horse was a challenge also. But I had lots of fun with her. She is a very nervous and jumpy horse. She was being a handful so I decided to use a new method that I have learned a few months back to quickly lay them on the ground. It is called the TAP. A guy in Australia has perfected it and is teaching it. Check it out online, it is very entertaining.  I worked with her about two minutes and she gently got woozy and laid down. Being that we were in the middle of "open ride night" there were a few people watching. It was really funny because the mare so enjoyed her experience she started falling asleep. Doc, my barrel horse's brother, walked up with Angie his rider. I wish I could have put words to his face. He was like " I knew it would come to this, they do eat us!"He was so concerned it was funny. After letting her lay there for about 8-9 min. I finally had to kick her foot to get her up. She sat up and started grazing while on her belly. I actually had to get the halter on her and encourage her to stand up. She was so relaxed. She was a totally different horse when she went back in the arena. All I wanted was her mind and I think I got it.

After unsaddling the grey I grabbed Spade. He was a good boy all day. He was a little slow about putting his boots on. He is still fearful of unknown objects. I will be working on that later this weekend.  He came to the pen eager to see all the other horses. Shockingly he is a pretty social guy. I call him the teddy bear because he comes and snuggles with the other horses. My old barrel mare is like that and I really like that trait in a horse. They seem to have great personalities. He seems to be doing much better in the midst of traffic and around people moving on the ground. I still try to warn everyone that is around him that he might kick. But I am trusting him more everyday. Yesterday Angie Lewis and I built a pedestal to start standing him on. Angie Robertson, my mustang friend, and I were chatting about some of Spades problems that I wasn't sure how to address. She suggested the pedestal and I liked the idea. So tonight he learned to stand on it. Along with all the other horses in the pen!! Everyone liked it. I am going to get all these barrel racers hooked on obstacle training. Spade fussed about it way longer then he should have but once I got him up there, he loved it. Now I let him come back to it when he is done going through the pattern or just sitting at the front. By the end of the night he was trying to get me over to it just so he could stand on it. I also sent him through the pole pattern again tonight. He is getting really good. I am finally seeing everything start to come around. I have a long way to go but I know that I can get him where he needs to be.

Oh I wanted to add a small disclaimer. My husband (grammar freak) and I (can't spell worth the flip) were discussing my blog yesterday. It was mildly funny. Everyone that really knows me knows I can't spell and I type slower than Christmas. But I feel that God has called me to share this story with you guys and encourage you by the things that God is teaching me through these wonderful creatures. I am  a big stickler on being excellent in everything you do. On the flip hand I am normally typing (slower than Christmas) the blog at 11pm and I am normally too tired to reread it five times to catch the little mistakes I have made. So to all my english teachers out there that can catch some of my spelling/grammar issues. Just take my lack of time and education as part of my charm. :-) We all have strengths and weaknesses, some of us are human dictionaries and some of us train mustangs. Unfortunately for my readers I am of the latter. I really do love and appreciate you all for your support. Even if I don't know you personally. This has been a wonderful experience where I have felt like I have truly stepped into something great. So again, Enjoy.