Friday, January 9, 2009

Comment Responses Conversation

JO said...

I loved the mounting from behind! I spent literally the WHOLE summer trying to do that, and could only manage if I did it from a tyre...
so well done, !!!
Jo xx

Thanks Jo! I know I wouldn't have been able to do that before, because I have been going to the gym and working out the past couple of months! Got to get those leg muscles strong, it gave me those extra couple of inches I needed. I bet you could do it if you built up more muscle, it worked for me! Thanks!

NICOLE said...
 
Hey Mariah!
I really like your new video. :) :) :)
How did you learn to mount like that? :-O
Great job the the barrel jumping! My horse is getting more confident with jumping, but I think it will be a while before he can jump that high. :P
About the ears- I am at level 3-4 and my horse (LBE) is exactly like that lots of times. And he will have his ears like that at liberty lots of times, even when we play in big pastures when he will stay with me and do stick to me and circling without wanting to leave, so it couldn't be because he doesn't want to be with me...
He especially does this on figure 8's :/ Even when he is doing them at liberty. One way I have found that gets him to put them forward on the figure 8 is asking him to canter on a small figure 8 with a shorter lead rope (8ft) lol I have not asked him to do that much, and he doesn't get it perfect, but he tries (he is a pretty coordinated horse). His ears usually go up when I ask him to do that, so maybe he was just bored with normal figure 8's...
Another thing on figure 8's- sometimes I use my stick to much and accidently use higher phases to direct him when he would have listened if I just pointed with my finger. That is one thing that makes him put his ears back.
For my horse, backing him up does not seem to work for getting his ears forward and "Wipe that Look off your face!" REALLY doesn't work at all. I don't know if this kind of ear pinning should be treated like dominance. I think it is more like the horse is saying he is either bored or there is too much pressure. With my horse, if I treat it like dominance, his attitude gets worse.
I have also noticed that when I play outside of the arena or in a pasture I with lots of trees and uneven ground, he usually will not have any problem with ears. :)
I sent a question to membersupport@parelli.com about it a while ago and they said that it sounds more like he was putting his ears back because I am asking him to do something he already knows how to do and he is a little bored. They said that I should just not pay too much attention to it and try to get more interesting, and eventually he will stop putting them back.
I have been working on playing less in the arena and when I do play in the arena, to ask for more challenging things, reward for a good attitude, teach lots of new things, and when he does something with his ears forward and a great expression to always move on to something else. :) That has been helping.
Thanks for posting the video, I really enjoyed watching it. :)
Let me know what works for you and your horse :)
I love LB horses, mine is sure teaching me a lot! :P
-Nicole
nicolekhg@gmail.com

I saw Amy Book mount like that, and just decided to try one day! I am sure it helps being 5' 11" too! ;) Thank you for the comment, I have used a lot of these and have had success. I also started a thread on this topic on the Savvy Club, maybe if you check that out it will help you too! Yes, LB horses really make you think! I love it too.

LUCY  said...
Hi Mariah,
Thanks for the video update, I really enjoyed watching it.
I think the beginnings of the Spanish walk was my favourite bit, in future I hope you can get a clearer film of it.
It must be mild in NC if you can play out in a t-shirt, lucky! :)
xo

Great! Yes, it was getting quite dark when I filmed it! I hopefully will get a new one up soon. The weather changes as much as my mares mood does, a lot!  69 degrees (Fahrenheit) one day, 20 degrees the other... that's NC for you!

LISA R said...
Hey Mariah!
Loved your new video! Is is very inspirational! You are quite athletic to mount like that! Loved the spanish walk too! Hopefully I'll be able to get to one of your play days when you have one! I'm not too far!

Thank you Lisa! We are having a play day soon in the spring, maybe the beginning/mid of February... if you'll give me your email address, I send a notification to the members and you will hear a long with them.

Thank you everyone, I enjoyed talking to you! Hope to have more conversations like this in the future.

Cheers!

Mariah

1 comment:

Jo said...

Advice noted :) You will get a VERY smug comment from me in a few months../years... when I've finally done it !!

Keep up the good work, Jo x