Fran visited today and Val was excellently behaved, especially considering the "distraction" of having "mom" there :-) Of course, part of that could have been me telling him that if he wasn't on his best behavior, his "mom" was going to leave him with me FOREVER. Boy, did he straighten out quick! LOL!!!!
I reviewed with Fran all of the various commands I use in general handling with Val. I showed her the "rules" I have set up for him, and how subtly he (and any horse) can test them. At this time, Val is in "boot camp" and cannot get away with a SINGLE infraction. It also takes very real attention to notice when he's even thinking of breaking a rule (like "no pawing while in crossties" or "don't move into my space when I walking around you" etc). I showed her how to watch for even subtle shifts in his balance, and to watch his face and eyes for any indications of him thinking of nipping etc. I also advised her NOT to get into his space at this time, NOT to handle his mouth/lips at this time, and to make VERY sure that playtime is playtime but work is work. I advised her while he's JUST starting to learn these new boundaries and they're really starting to sink in, NOT to tempt him to break the rules by getting into his space and giving him openings for misbehaving. I have started to purposely break the rules, and show him that I can get into HIS space any time I want, but he must never get into mine without being invited. He's learned this with me, but he needs more repetition with Fran before he can start to leanr the difference between work and play and purposeful invitation.
I showed Fran his cues for moving his hips over or asking to back in the crossties. Val likes to pretend he's made out of stone and will stand and plant when asked to move at times, sometimes even shifting his weight INTO you in defiance. So I showed her an easy way to get his attention when touching his hip points and asking him to move over by using a hoofpick to "poke" on the hip a little. I've worked with him on this, and if he doesn't listen to a gentle finger put on his hip and the verbal "over", then I go to putting my whole hand on his hip and pushing. If that doesn't work, I touch him with the hoofpick and over he goes in a flash :-) Next time I go to ask, I usually don't need the hoofpick! I also showed Fran some of the "rules" I have set for him and the exceptions. When we went to secure the field the round pen is in, we left Val tied and walked away (he ties like a champ--Fran made sure of that with hours of tying him and primping LOL!) and he started to paw once I was out of sight. She told me and I told her that was ok. As long as I can't see him pawing and it's not in a human's presence, I'm ok with it. Paw all day in solitude. Do not paw while I work with you.
I showed Fran the universal "finger up" in his face and big "negative noise" I use to let him know he's doing something wrong. I put a lead line on him and we took a walk first so I could also show her the "right turn" cue I train into all horses, especially horses I have to prep for halter shows and doing the triangle (all right turns!). I instructed her that any time he came within a 2 foot bubble to cue him with the lead laid across his neck (like a neck rein) and cue his shoulder to move to the right. It kept him at at least a 2 foot distance from me, which also quells the temptation to nip etc. He walked quietly on a loose lead, no chain. We did lots of stops, starts, standing with her walking all around him like a judge (I do a lot of inhand sporthorse show training), touching him and walking away. We did backing on a long lead, working on a "pillow" of space and him backing away when I went into the "pillow" of space. I showed Fran how to raise her hand, send "energy" down the lead and walk into him (without getting too close!!) and reinforcing with the in-hand whip if necessary to back up. Again, an escalation of cues if the first subtle cue is not heeded. I handed her the lead and coached her through all the moves. I also explained step by step any time he wasn't listening and why, giving her instruction on how to get better responsiveness.
I also showed Fran how she needs to give Val verbal warning before just asking him to stop. I showed her the set "rules" that he has for walking (i.e. he cannot turn his head into me, he must look straight ahead etc.) and showed her how and when to reinforce them. I explained using a warning word "and" as a verbal half-halt to prepare Val to know she'll be asking him to stop. A common mistake in riding, leading and lunging is to suddenly screech on the brakes without warning. That simple "and (pause).....ho." verbal warning kept him from skewing his body around her when she would suddenly ask him to stop.
We went into the round pen and did lunge work in harness. He stood like a champ for getting the harness on and stood well for walking into the gates (he would fidget like crazy before, trying to eat the lunge line, trying to back, getting generally bored etc). At first, we had our daily battle of "you must walk past the mare" (who despises him and rushes the round pen wall, ears pinned and teeth bared, when he gets close) for about 5 minutes. We do this every time, and he stops trying. I did show Fran how to be proactive in KNOWING he's going to try to stop and stand with the horses on the other side of the fence and to start cueing him to remain going forward 2-3 strides ahead and to "lay off" and let him roll when he's going forward willingly. I worked him briefly in both directions to demonstrate and to motivate him forward when he tested with the horse distraction, then handed the lunge line over and coached Fran through doing the same thing. She was thrilled with how responsive he was to walk, trot, stop, stand and NO CHEWING. Not during bitting, lunging, leading, NOTHING. She was floored by the "no chewing" :-)
Fran took the harness off of Val (and he stood like a rock) and then hopped on him bareback for a few rounds around the round pen while lunging. I was proud of her, as I pushed her a little outside her comfort zone and she rose to the occasion with bravery and grace. They lunged around me for a few minutes and we walked into the barn, quiet as a mouse. I showed her how the "right turn" cue works with the bridle as well, showing her how he already knows indirect rein :-)
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