The New Trickster

Tuesday October 14 2014

Steph has found her new passion of learning Natural Horsemanship in her journey with 5-year-old Smokey. Smokey went to school in Ted Nicholes' training program, and Steph and Smokey just attended a 3-day clinic with him.

Dudley has been my spring-summer-fall project. He's also Steph's horse, and I adopted him as my personal project when he got fat (i.e. obese) last winter. I stuck him in my ODE Program: the Owyhee Diet and Exercise Program. Over the Tough Love months, he lost weight, did his first 50-mile endurance ride in 6 years, and in fact completed 3 50-mile rides so far this year (aiming for the last one of the season in 2 weeks!).

So now what?

Dudley is a smart horse. A good local cowboy broke him about 10 years ago, and had him doing tricks then: While standing on Dudley's back he could crack a whip; he could lay Dudley down. So Dudley already has some trick training in his foundation, and he learns fast, especially when treats are involved. (Once years ago, I gave him a treat when he first stopped and peed out on the trail, since that is a good endurance horse trait to have; after I gave him a treat the second time he peed, he started stopping every half a mile, trying to squeeze something out so he'd get a treat. He didn't forget that for years. Years.)

I've long had it in the back of my mind that shoot, Dudley could learn tricks. Somebody just needs to teach him. He'd look mighty snazzy doing the Spanish Walk, or bowing beside someone. Then I thought, wait, why don't *I* try to learn to teach him tricks? Dudley can become a Trick Horse. He can Spanish Walk beside me! He can bow beside me!

So I joined the Horse Academy.

Horsetricks101.com, the Horse Tricks Academy, is Jain from Australia, with her horses Trigger and Bella. Her method is a well-explained step by step process of building the basic steps and foundations of tricks. She's got videos and ebooks and worksheets, and she uses her horses in her videos to demonstrate the process.

Interacting with your horse by teaching tricks is not only fun, but it improves your communication and trust with your horse. I am lucky (says Jain) that even though Dudley has a weight challenge, he is motivated by food, and he loves treats; and those kinds of horses are easiest to train (I just need to find some very low-cal, or very tiny treats!). I really am lucky that he is already a well-behaved horse who respects my space and won't hog me for treats, and will back up out of my space with a flick of my hands and stand there. (And backing up, and standing and waiting, are two of the foundation tricks!)

The Dude started 2 days ago, and I'd have to say he's already got one of the basics, Touch, down already. He made me laugh today, because he already gets it.

I have a feeling Dudley is going to be teaching me a lot more things than he's already taught me.

The Rock Star from Down Under

Tuesday October 7 2014

You'd be forgiven if you mistook him for a rock star: a polished costume (brand name jeans, a clean starched shirt with his logo on it, brand name boots), a polished show, announcer, sound system, and a cult-like following of screaming fans. But if you can overlook all that (or enjoy it, if you like it), you can always learn something from watching these natural horsemanship trainers with horses, particularly problem horses which are used to demonstrate their training methods in the clinics.

Nampa Idaho was natural horsemanship trainer Clinton Anderson's 8th of 9 scheduled Walkbout Tour stops this year - a two-day tour described on his website as "the most inspirational two days any horse lover can have. Whether you ride English, Western or just love to hit the trails, learn how the man behind the Method uses his techniques every single day to develop respectful and fun horses. Watch in awe as Clinton puts one of his standout horses through their paces during a spectacular demonstration." An Australian, Clinton now has a spread in Texas where he trains horses and people, in addition to traveling the country and the world on tours like this one.

We Owyhee Crick Women fit into one corner of the arena of Clinton Anderson's followers: females. But being primarily Arabian horse endurance riders we were rather to the far left of his normal fan profile of females who mostly ride Quarter horses in arenas.

I've come a long way in learning not just riding, but horsemanship over the years, and I know I still have plenty more to learn, which is why I really enjoy watching the pros, the real horsemen who know how to get the best out of a horse without bucking him out, or beating him into temporary submission. By teaching the horse to choose the right behavior, and building on basic lessons of respect, the end result is a 4-legged partner - not just a slave - you can come to trust to share your adventures with.

It is inspirational and awesome to watch Clinton or one of his certified clinicians bring a rogue horse around to showing respect and willingness within 5 minutes of the horse's normal often-outrageous behavior, to see the transformation of the horse as the light bulbs of understanding turn on in his head.

And there's absolutely nothing wrong with expecting a thousand pound animal to respect you, give you space, accept you as his leader in your relationship; and in fact it's downright insane to let your horse wear the pants in your family. I'm always astounded by the people who bring their problem horses to the clinics for the trainer to 'fix' - a horse who is dragging them into the arena, shoving them around, running over them. As Clinton Anderson repeated over and over, if you don't have a horse who respects you, it's not a matter of *if* you're going to get hurt, but *when.*

Clinton did sound a bit worn out and a bit jaded at times (albeit with a sense of humor)… tired of the ladies in particular (a majority of his clientele) who let their horses run all over them because they love them (one lady answered Clinton when he asked "Why do you let him do this?" "Because he loves me") … the same things over and over...

Clinton probably does enjoy the attention, the fame, the work of teaching horses and people safe ways of handling and riding; but after seeing the same problems over and over and over, year after year, the same ignorant owners with dangerous, disrespectful horses over and over and over, year after year, and after hammering the same message over and over and over, year after year, I bet there are times he just wishes he could go saddle up his old pony, put on a plain ol' Tshirt, and go on a fun, relaxing 20-mile trail ride in some scenic country.

She LIKES It When She's Good

Thursday May 22 2014

I've been the conditioning jockey for J.T.'s beloved mare Sunny, while he's away being a Presidential Innovation Fellow in Washington D.C.

We all call Sunny "Special" - for various reasons. One is that she can get a little wound up during rides - training rides and endurance rides. She's a Shagya, but I call her a 'gaited horse' - as in she can cantalope, trotalope, trollop, jig, be-bop, jigalot, jigalope, and pogo stick her way down the trails, which can, at times, be most uncomfortable for the rider. (See Three Dinks to get what I mean.)

Today I had the best training ride on her, ever. I even looked down a few times to make sure it was actually Sunny that I was riding. She was relaxed, comfortable, only cantering and trotting and walking - not jigging - actually sauntering down the trail. Wow - just - wow. I am sure she likes it so much better when she's good.

Tomorrow I'm riding her on Day 1 of the Owyhee Fandango. If she keeps up this astonishing calm and smooth way of going, I may not let J.T. have her back when he gets home!

Luna: The Long Walk

Monday February 11 2013

Back in my teens, I worked on the King Ranch in south Texas. One of their methods of halter breaking weanlings was simple and took a minimum of human hours, which was a good thing, because they had a big crop of babies every year. Once the humans got a halter on the baby the first time (which wasn't always simple), they tied the weanling's halter to a donkey's halter and turned them out in a pasture.

From then on, wherever the donkey went, so did the weanling. If the donkey wanted to get a drink, the little horse went to get a drink with him. If the little horse wanted a drink later, it was too bad if the donkey wasn't thirsty. If the donkey wanted to trot to the far end of the pasture, the little horse trotted to the far end of the pasture with him. If the donkey turned his head to the right, the little horse turned his head to the right with him. Didn't take long to halter break those babies, because donkeys don't take no for an answer. They don't even realize the little horse is saying no. Those weanlings came off those donkeys right proper halter broke.

Right now, 8-month-old baby Luna is at that age… think Terrible Twos. Smart-ass. Little Miss Attitude. Thinks she knows everything. Thinks she's in charge.

She has no qualms about badgering the older horses in the pasture,

and a couple of times she's come at me with ears pinned, until I acted like a irritated dominant horse and charged her and scared her.

It was a good time to remind Luna about her earlier halter breaking and respect lessons; and short of borrowing a donkey, I got out the halter and lead rope, and enticed her and mom Perry and another horse in the front pen with some hay.

Day 1: Luna politely let me put her halter on. I clipped the lead rope to the halter and let it drag on the ground. After walking around and stepping on the rope a couple of times, Luna remembered to stop when she felt the pull on her head. She doesn't panic like some horses do when they feel sudden head pressure. After a couple of hours, I used the lead rope to lead and turn her - follow the pressure of the rope, turning left, turning right, backing up. 

Day 2: This time Little Miss Smart-Ass Pants had a little halter tantrum. Luna stood there while I slipped the halter over her nose, but then suddenly decided she did not want to wear the halter today. She backed up and wheeled away before I could tie it. I had no shot in holding onto her, and it would have been dangerous to try, as she kicks with her hind legs when she's feeling saucy. She's only 8 months old, but she could still inflict some damage.


So, she got the Big Naughty Horse treatment: You want to run away from me? OK, you're going to run away from me, and you're going to keep running until I say stop, and it's going to be long, long, far, far beyond your naughtiest, wildest running imaginations.

Luna thought she was Boss for the first 3 minutes, racing around me with her nose up in the air, tail up in the air, giving me the horse finger.

I began following the little monster around. At first she thought it was the You Can Chase Me But You Can't Catch Me game, but it was really the I'm Driving You game. Around and around she ran as I walked steadily after her, only running at her if she tried to stop, or if she dropped her head trying to get a bite of hay when she passed it.

Luna's running quickly disintegrated to a trot after she decided it wasn't so fun anymore, then a walk, then, as it went on, a weary walk. I simply kept putting pressure on her to move forward by walking steadily towards her, and tossing the rope at her if she tried to stop. At first Mom ran around too with Luna, but then she quickly realized I was not after her, so she went to eating hay and ignoring me and her naughty child, while Luna walked and walked and walked. Batman totally ignored everything but the hay. He even pinned his ears and snapped at Luna when she got too close to him. He wasn't going to help her out!

I kept giving Luna chances to stop walking and face me, or stop and let me get closer, by changing my language: saying "Whoa" and stopping the pressure I was putting on her by standing still. But nope, she wouldn't do it; and so she kept walking, around and around and around, almost unto (she thought) exhaustion. Think Stephen King's The Long Walk.

Luna was so tired she tried to lay down in the middle of walking, and once her eyes closed while walking, but no, I did not feel sorry for the little sh*t, and no, she was not going to win this battle. I had all day to walk. It was her choice to keep walking, or to stop when i asked.

After about 45 minutes, finally her armor cracked. When I asked her once again to stop, Luna stopped walking and faced me, stood there huffing and puffing, and let me walk up to her. I rewarded her by letting her stand and catch her breath while I scratched her itchy sweaty neck and body and belly. Then I put the halter on while she continued to stand there quietly, and then I scratched her some more.

I walked away and then approached her again, and Luna started walking, then trotting away, so I drove her around a couple more rounds, then she was like - OK, I give, I think I learned my lesson, turning to face me when I asked her to, and waiting quietly while I walked up and petted her.

The next time I walked away and approached, she stood there.

Day 3: I put Luna and mom Perry and Batman in the pen, and I approached Luna with her halter and lead rope. She started backing away, but stopped when I started rubbing her back. I raised the halter and she stepped away… but stopped when I scratched her neck. I slipped the halter over her nose while continuing to scratch her, and she stood there. I scratched her some more then immediately walked away and let her alone. I approached her several times during the day and she didn't step away; I turned her around with her lead rope both directions each time, then walked away and left her alone.

At the end of the day's lesson, when I took off her halter and she remained standing quietly, I scratched her all over and gave her a horse treat.

Day 4: In the pen, Luna stood quietly for her haltering, even reaching over to put her nose in it, and she did everything I asked when I moved her around with the lead rope.

She got a treat at the end of the day's lesson.


Every day now, she sticks her nose in the halter, and waits to see what I'm going to ask her to do. I think she's got it all again.

However. I do entertain a fantasy of tying Luna to big old Krusty, and watching the old man drag her around everywhere. Is that bad?

What To Do on A Cold Windy Day

Saturday February 9 2013

If it's a bone-chilling cold howly-wind winter day like today, you bundle up well, and carry an old holey tarp out to the horse herd, who's spent half the day spooking from Horse Eating Wind Monsters, a day I wouldn't for any reward take my chances riding a horse in this wind.

I knew some of them wouldn't be bothered - Stormy, Jose, Mac, and Finneas, each of whom I've been mounted on, ridden up to a tarp hanging on the fence, picked it up, and passed it over their necks and butts to the other side, dragged it around off their sides, and tossed the tarp back on the fence. (Don't try this at home with just anybody!)

But what would the rest of them do, including baby Luna, who gets jumpy when I gently swing a small noise-less rope around her body…?

I thought for sure there would be a few rodeos… but the horses all came up to the flapping tarp to check it out like bees to honey, led by Luna!


Jose's reaction didn't surprise me - he cared less that the tarp was there, flapping in the gusts.


You can see that while the ex-cow horse Mac is afraid of cows, he's not afraid of a potentially scary Horse-Eating Monster Tarp, even when it blows up and wraps around his face.


I was surprised the rest of the herd was just as brave as Luna.


Luna wasn't scared at all. In fact, she pinned the tarp down right away and had her way with it!


Even when the wind whipped it up off the ground and it suddenly cuddled Luna with its crackly embrace,

she wasn't scared and she stood there till Smokey spooked and took off, taking the herd with her.

I followed the herd, then led the horses further into the pasture, dragging the flapping tarp behind me, with the horses again following the tarp with interest,

and Luna was the first to eagerly approach again.


She gave the tarp what for again, showing it who was boss,


and who not to mess with on a cold and windy day in Owyhee.

My Eyebrows Are Sweating

Thursday March 15 2012

So said Jose, after the ride we squeeeeeezed in today, between days of gale force winds, rainstorms, slick ground, hurricanes, and more rain and snow (yay!!!) and slick ground to come.

Our first local endurance ride, the Owyhee Tough Sucker, is coming up April 7 - and our training has been sporadic the last two weeks and will be over the next couple of weeks, due to weather and traveling.

We took the horses on the Three Cheese Casserole ride - three layers of washes - 2 miles up a wash, 3 miles down another wash, and 1 1/2 miles up another wash and up onto a ridge. The sand is somewhat deep now, and with the horses still wearing partial winter coats (they have started to shed), it was a strenuous workout.

I don't ride with a heart monitor, so I go on knowledge - what I know the horse has been doing, and what he can take - and by how much he sweats. I've always heard that when the top of a horse's butt gets sweaty, he's either out of shape, or working very hard. I've never seen a scientific study on this, but I have found it to be accurate. And when their eyebrows are sweating, they're producing a lot of heat.

Unless the wind is just right, I can't hear my horse breathing when I'm trotting or cantering, but today I could hear Rhett huffing behind me on the third Cheese layer, and I used that to help gauge the effort the horses were putting out.

Today the horses worked up a good sweat under their saddle pads, on the neck and chest 

and shoulders, 

and between and down the back legs (you know, the 'shaving cream').

And the reward was a taste of the hint of green grass starting to color the desert.

Gettin' the WHOA On

Wednesday August 3 2011

Ever been on a horse that likes to go and go, who doesn't want to slow down, who pulls and pulls because you pull and pull to try to slow him down?

I've come to realize that among some endurance riders, the WHOA is highly underrated. A lot of horses learn to GO before they learn how to WHOA. Sometimes it's just easier to let the horse go fast than to take the time to teach him (or keep reinforcing, if the horse is not a fast learner) the WHOA before you let him GO. The riders hang on the horse's mouth, which makes him harder-mouthed, and less likely to respond by slowing down when you pull.

(Don't get your feathers all fluffed up, I'm by no means saying I don't do this myself. Sometimes it is just easier to let a horse go. But I'm always trying to work on something when I ride, like trying to teach the horse I ride not to pull, and I'm always trying to learn a better way to do this, because I am NOT good at ring or dressage work! I've also learned that, especially in an endurance ride, I can't get a horse to respond to my requests 100% of the time. Sometimes I have to pick my battles and when we're going to have them - give them a little time to ignore me or go fast and pull for a while before I can ask them to start responding to my leg or reins. Sometimes I only ask for a little response at a time before I can start expecting them to pay attention to me longer.)

Just going fast can be fun, but if the horse is too young to be going too fast too soon, or if he's coming back from an injury, or if he's the kind of horse that isn't smart enough to slow down on his own when he needs a breather, it can be very destructive. Some horses are hardwired to go fast till they drop. Some horses just have no brakes. It can be especially detrimental to you and your horse if a whoa is needed quickly but there are no brakes.

Sometimes, when your horse is out of control, or when he has no brakes, or when fighting with him isn't getting him to slow down and it's wearing both of you out, it's time to stop what you're doing, and go back to basics.

That's what Steph did with Batman.

Batman likes to go FAST. It's what he's always known. It's fun, but he's one who doesn't know when to slow down and he doesn't know WHOA very well; he knows how to pull and keep going fast.

Steph had Connie get on him a couple of times; Connie is great at getting a horse to slow down, put his head down, and start responding to leg rather than hands pulling on his mouth.


Afterwards, Steph continued this method by using the bitting rig in the round pen. Batman is not one of those fast learners. In fact, we say he's a bit... dumb... (but he's very sweet, and he wants to do good)... but that just means you have to reinforce things a lot, even when he learns something into a habit, or he'll forget it.

The first time Steph put the Pessoa bitting rig on him and asked him to move around the round pen, Batman pulled and pulled and pulled with his head up and braced against the bit. "He kept going - 'ow! ow! ow! ow!' and when he would drop his head and get relief, he'd go 'Ahhhh...' - and then he'd put his head back up in the air, 'ow! ow! ow!'" Batman didn't really completely figure it out that first day.

But the second day was easier. He resisted and pulled less, he dropped his head more; it took him less time to remember that if he dropped his head the pulling stopped.


Steph's been working with him in the round pen with the bitting rig every time before she rides him; and then she rides him in draw reins - and it's showing.


Even Connie noticed this weekend that the muscling in Batman's neck is starting to change - it's building up on top for the more curved neck position; and, flying home to our camp on the road to City of Rocks at a 14 mph trot on Sunday, Batman was moving along relaxed, at this speed, with horses in front of him, and with Steph exerting no pulling contact on the reins at all (and no draw reins).

This method may not be liked by everybody, nor will it work with every horse - you have to find what works right for your horse; it also depends on what kind of learner your horse is.

This bitting rig works on Batman, and he the kind of horse that you'll have to keep reminding and reinforcing a habit even after he learns it; and he'll probably, at times in an endurance ride, forget what he's learned. But he's getting it.

He's gettin' his WHOA on.

All Grown Up

Wednesday July 13 2011

It's been 2 months since the Little Princess Smokey went to Andy's Boot Camp Boarding School down the road to get educated.

Andy brought her back home today and showed us and the Owyhee herd her graduation papers.



Though she's still green, she moves nicely and willingly and forwardly,

knows how to move off leg and back up.

Andy said she was "a bit sting-y" to get started ("it took a couple of days"), and she can be "a little flighty", but that "she wants to please you."


You could see the difference in her eye, too, compared to the day she left here with that stubborn, bug-eyed look in her eye she got when she didn't want to do something, such as load in the trailer. Now her eye was alert, but relaxed, and looking for her next instruction.


Andy really liked her while he had her. Steph really likes what she sees. It's so important to start a young horse right. Andy's the best one around here to do that.


Now school's out for the summer for this young filly. Getting an early education was the best thing for this filly, but she'll get turned out at least a year now to keep growing. But we won't be calling her Princess anymore.

Smokey is all grown up now.

Hold Your Head High, Run Fast, Pull Pull Pull!

Saturday July 2 2011

There are two kinds of FAST endurance horses: the one who will slow down to give himself a break either on his own or when you ask him to, and the one who will go fast till he drops. The second type will make it harder on him and you when he resists your requests to slow down.

Sound familiar? I expect it's more common than we endurance riders would like to admit.

Batman is a talented endurance horse who knows how to go FAST; but he doesn't know when to slow down. The rider has to do that for him... but Batman doesn't really have a good set of brakes. He knows how to pull and he knows how to resist with his head up in the air, back hollowed and mouth braced against the bit. He wants to just go and go and go; but his young body (7 years old) is not yet up to the kind of speed that he wants and knows how to do.

Steph took the time on the 50-mile Day 2 of the Cheap Thrills ride to work on slowing him down. She worked on him the whole 50 miles. It was exhausting.

We're lucky enough to have a crick neighbor Connie, who is extremely talented at ring work. She can get the hardest mouthed horse to soften, stop resisting, and move forward relaxed, with his head down and back rounded. She's been working with Batman the past couple of days.

Day 1 took an hour for him to start getting an inkling of what she was asking. I didn't see Day 1, but the following photos are from Day 2. It took even longer this second day to get him to stop resisting and start dropping his head. It took a while to start getting any response from him, and at first it was for just a stride or two, then his head would go back up in the air. As the session went on, Batman started dropping his head a little longer.

Head High [slide show]


"He doesn't get what I'm asking, and his muscles - his neck, his back, and his hind end - aren't developed to work like this," Connie said. "It will take time for them to develop, and then it will get easier for him." You can see in the Head High photos that his neck muscles are well developed on the underside of his neck, from holding it high, and not on the top.

Getting Better [slide show]


Going Good [slide show]


Mix it up with lots of backing up


and sidestepping. [slide show]


Give him a breather once in a while and tell him what a Good Boy he is.


We all agree that while Batman is the kindest horse, he's not the smartest. That doesn't mean he can't learn; It just means that getting him moving in the correct rounded way will take more repetition for it to become a habit. But he'll get it eventually.

Every endurance horse can benefit from this kind of 'dressage work' - if you want to call it that. (Every rider can too, though it has been documented that I SUCK at it.)

You won't take the 'Go' or the spirit out of your fast horse if you teach him to slow down, drop his head and not pull. He'll still have the Go, but he'll also have the Whoa, when you need it, or when he needs it... and it will make your rides a whole lot easier and more fun, for you and your horse.

The Little Princess Goes To School

Friday May 13 2011

Today is the day the little princess Smokey started boot camp. Today the little princess Smokey saw God Andy.

'Little' Smokey - the daughter of Princess, is 2. And big. But really, still a baby. She hasn't been asked to do much of anything her whole life other than leading, and standing tied, and getting her feet trimmed. She has been allowed to grow up and develop, physically and mentally, be a horse on a lot of acreage - footloose and fancy free... until today.

Andy and his wife Gloria came to pick up Smokey - Steph is sending her off to school at Andy's for a couple of weeks of basic training.


Smokey had never been in a trailer before. Ever. I've seen glimpses of a bit of Stubborn in her, when she doesn't get her way. Today would be her biggest challenge ever, to get in a trailer for the first time to go to Andy's house.

Andy's a local cowboy trainer - grew up here then left then came back - and he's already worked with a lot of local endurance riders' horses. He's very good with horses - gets them to do what he wants them to do, in a quiet, light-handed, but insistent way.

It didn't take too much asking from Andy to get Smokey to go up to the big scary trailer and stand there,


and even start putting a foot


then two


inside the trailer.

But then, she decided she didn't want to go in that trailer. And when Smokey doesn't want to do something, she can indeed be stubborn about it.


She started making a big deal out of it, backing up, then wanting to get away from it all. Andy simply started asking her to go in circles around him. He used a lunge whip, either flicking it at her hind feet or butt, or tapping her on the butt with it, gently but insistently.


She didn't want to do that, either, clamping her tail down and freezing before leaping forward.


It took some time. Smokey thought she could out-stubborn Andy, but he kept asking her to move her feet. She tried everything she could think of to just get away from the situation - she tried yanking away,

rearing,


she tried lunging at Andy,

she tried almost falling over, she even double-barreled at him, but Andy just kept asking her to move - move - move in a circle around him. The harder she resisted, the more effort he asked her to put into moving around him.


Her only respite was a quiet space right in front of the trailer. As long as she stopped and stood quietly right there, she got to stand there and rest.




He'd then ask her to step into the trailer; and as long as she made an effort to move forward - give in to the pressure on her head, or move a foot forward and relax, she got to stand there.


As soon as she resisted - threw her head up or backed up, Andy asked her to go back to moving her feet around him, move, move, move.

Andy kept the same patient demeanor: just kept asking her for a response, releasing when she gave, and when she resisted, he just asked her for more effort in moving forward.

It took about an hour - time for a thunderhead to build and completely cover the sky, with thunder rumbling overhead - before Smokey really gave in to moving around Andy without resistance - no tail tucking, no crowding Andy, no pulling on the rope. She was wet with sweat.


Ten feet away from the trailer, Andy asked her to walk around him (she no longer needed to trot, because she was no longer resisting), and he then straightened her out and walked toward the trailer on a loose lead rope, and she walked right into it without any hesitation.




It's art. It's a matter of timing: requesting and rewarding at just the right moment. It's a matter of making the wrong things difficult and the right things easy for the horse.

It's a matter of making the horse move forward. "You can't get a horse to do anything without forward motion," Andy said. "It's hard to get a green horse to back up from a standstill. First you get his feet moving forward, then you ask him to back up." Then same was true for Smokey - it was hard for her to just stand still at the trailer door and lift up her feet one by one and step inside (especially the first time) - so once he got her willingly moving forward without resistance, it made it easy for her to keep walking right into the trailer.

Andy left Smokey to stand in the trailer for a bit, then he led her out - she leaped out of there - then he circled her a few more times and led her back to the trailer and she walked right in again. This time he stepped inside with her and had Gloria close the door. They stood in there a while quietly; and when Gloria opened the door and Andy walked out with Smokey, the filly stepped out beside him calmly.


They walked to the side of the truck and trailer (a new spot), where Andy asked Smokey to step around him in circles.


She did this quietly, calmly; and Andy led/drove her along the side of the trailer, to the door, where she turned and on her own hopped right into the trailer.






He left her in there a while by herself. Then he did it twice more: leading her out (calmly) and away from the trailer, then letting her go back in (calmly and willingly) - and there you had a horse that will now willingly go into a horse trailer.

Princess Smokey's whole perception of the world changed today - Boot Camp has begun!