When I arrived to get ready, I found Try had been kicked on her right hind leg--as from past experience I know she has a tendency for such an injury to swell and take recovery days--decision was to go ahead with the day but only walk.
Sara arrived after I got Try ready and we decided to use the paddock out back for play as a round pen and because it has an adjoining partition where one horse could graze and if a little separation was needed to prevent kicking we were good.
Liberty: before Sara and Nickers got there Try and I did a good bit of my sticking to her--the last few days she has been in a bad mood when I saw her in the pasture--??bugs/heat/Angel/me who knows--anyway the sticking to her and wiping her with a damp cool cloth seem to help. With the 4 of us Sara and Nickers started with liberty circling game, engaging rather than disengaging the LBE play drive until they got 4 laps each way maintaining gait and direction. Then the pedestal--Sara and Nickers are working on getting all 4 feet--so I said great and got Sara to help me with patience and timing to get Try to get at least one back foot or a good try anyway. We both yoyoed Try--I learned that if I am satisfied with a slow backup that Try will go from my bringing up my life just a bit and stop with life down. BUT if asking for impulsion/strong warmup/then I will see the RB unconfidence and she will keep backing as an escape and be hesitant to come back. HOW interesting. I asked for Sara's input on the FQ 360 with inside hind leg stepping across--she pointed out I was focusing on the hind leg and when I switched it got better--I could feel the good step without looking.
Actually I was glad for the reminder about focus--and want to be check everything for focus again as this has been a priority this year and I've not considered it lately.
It was interesting to see Sara and Try yoyo--that Try is responsive to light, moving into L4 cues, but needs a strong internal energy from the human??? I spent a few minutes with Nickers but want to try that another day when I can get Sara to coach me so I am consistent with what she does. Nickers is just great--brave, confident, curious, energetic and relaxed--she would crowd my space and I was unsure what to do--my instinct to go on her with the rope to back her out did not seem right.
We took a little lunch break and Try and Nickers seemed, after one little mare squeal, to be happy to hang out and eat grass near each other.
Next we chose the ring rather than the field to ride. We each warmed up our own ways. I was being careful to keep Try at a walk. I showed Sara some of the freestyle into finesse moves that Kelly and Dan have taught us. Then Sara rode Try a little for eyes, belly button, LEG--feeling Try's response to the pushing leg. Then Try and I took a break and Sara rode with the bareback pad and kid's stick walk, trot, canter, patterns for eyes bellybutton leg stick.
After we all walked up the road to view the cows. Nickers was fantastic and Sara knows just what she needs. Try wasn't as happy about the excursion as she has been but she was fine.
We finished with a lovely trailer loading session that Sara and Nickers did.
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