Just resting my foot

Garbo has been looking at me with his ears back a bit while he is in his yard (not anywhere else so maybe it's a bedroom thing) - as if to say 'you can only come near me if you have carrots'. There is not alot of grass at the moment so he does get a little grumpy when that is the case (not that he is starving or anything!).

So today we worked a little on the catching game as he walked off when he saw the halter. Oh dear! Only took one more go to get his permission (I have run out of carrots and apples and treats - oh dear - don't tell Garbo - although I fear he knows!). We went straight to the pigtails and I worked on our weave pattern (in a circle). The pigtails that are my round pen, without the tape. I had to seperate, isolate and re-combine today. I only had the 12ft as it was a spur of the moment thing to play as soon as I caught him.

I decided to get him to weave by driving Zone 1 away from me. I tapped the air but didn't get alot so in the end I held a piece of line between my hands (about 2 ft apart) and drove energy towards him with that in a rhthym. That seemed to work.

I have been reading Pat's Natural Horse.Man.Ship book and for the send he says to also point your leg and foot in the direction you want the horse to move off. And to swing the rope at zone 1 till he does, then return your leg to neutral. I tried that today. Boy I really realised on the 12ft how much Garbo picks up on my body language. Just putting my foot out in the end would send him. He doesn't like me making contact with the rope end.

So then I asked for just walk while I stayed neutral - he kept offering trot but I wanted him to relax and just 'get it'. I used the rope end to twirl at Zone one when ever he came closer and you know finally he got the idea.

Then I worked on the dis-engage. He rushes in to me and stands over me, so I did star jumps as he came rushing in. He kind of stopped. Kind of. We kept doing it until he understood. Phew. Talk about brain power for both of us.

Oh - before all of this we just cruised around and I asked Garbo if he would like to try out the tire now that I put some more sand in it. He said "if it's ok with you I'll just rest my foot here for a bit". I said - that's cool.


After all of that, and ending on a great disengage, I took him up by the gate for some long grass.