Trailer Day 2

I watched the ret of Level 2 last night and then started watching Level 3 today. It seems I am further along in Level 3 than I thought - Pat says it's excellence on a 22ft rope (and then later starting with the 45ft!)... so that's good! He says

• "Expect alot, Accept a little and Reward Often" - so that was my mantra today.
• Added to that "be particular but not critical" and
• "apply appropriate pressure, and apply pressure appropriately".

Food for thought there!

So - I started with just a little disengaging the HQ and also the unravel your horse with the rope thing but to begin with keeping the rope behind Zone 5 with some pressure (thought that would help with doing up the divider in the float).

Then we went to the float and I asked him on - he went on to mid zone 3 and stopped. O pointed, then lifted the rope (didn't have the CS stick today) and then began to swing the rope, the twirled the rope, hitting the grass as an added phase if required. I had some apples up the front and he loaded in three asks, zone 1, then 2 and 3, then 4 and 5. I didn't close the divider.

I relaxed and he wandered out. This in itself is good so that he can calmly come off too not thinking he has to dart off in case I stop him getting off.

We did it a couple more times and then with me further away from the ramp. I got one of those goes on camera (we have since moved the post peelings so he now has more room to line up properly.

I let him have some grass while George and I ate a bagel for lunch on the float ramp, and then we did one more and quit for the day.

Coco and Maraschino ate some weeds while they were watching.

Isn't Coco adorable.?

Then I played a bit with Maraschino - we did some very light phases for yo you and he backed up nicely. We did some driving from zone three with the CS on the break of his withers like Pat did in the L2 DVD with Midas. He didn't love it, but no where near the reaction that Midas had. He relaxed, we quit. Then tried again after a wait. The goal was to get him in sync with me.

Then we did some lovely circles over the pole (12ft) at walk... and then I took him up to the wash bay and tried out the mini massager on him again - he let me massage him all over - even his head and face and ears!! Well done Maraschino!

Sorry - a bit slack - no photos of Maraschino - need all my hands at the ready!