I don't need to remind anyone, that Polaris is the clown in our herd.. He has such a sweet loving personality and is really just so full of play, while discipline and training are necessary we are not wanting to lose his originality....
Day One
Polaris is NOT getting any grain other than his daily ration of HORSE GUARD. & The usual treats, such as a few grapes, pieces of apple or banana, strawberries.... ABSOLUTELY NO GRAIN.
The morning started when I took the girls out to the paddocks and gave each her own space for play time. This allowed more freely to buck kick and roll by themselves without having to share their space and bump each other.
I went back to the barn for Polaris. I opened the top half of Polaris's door and talked to him a bit. He was going to be staying in for some one to one time with me, while I cleaned stalls. At first he wanted to push on his gate and get all wild like storming around. Being mouthy. Swung his butt around to the door like he was going to kick it, I gave him a little swat on the butt with the riding crop and said NO! He turned around and never pointed his butt in my direction again.
Today we would be using the small riding crop frequently, I showed it to him, stroked him with it at the same time as I was petting him with my other hand. I made sure he wasn't afraid of the crop as we worked through the day. When he would push on the gate or kick at it with his front foot, I commanded BACK, and tapped the stall door with the crop. When he moved back, he was rewarded and praised. If he didn't move back, I repeated the process. Using the crop to tap the door, the crop did NOT tap Polaris during this exercise.
Some good advice given to me was that when training a horse do it in 3's... So make sure you repeat the lesson 3 times.
By the time I was done with the girls stalls, Polaris was standing at his door respectfully with his head out and watching me work. Of course he was enjoying the occasional grape slipped to him, a reward for politeness.
He really is a smart little horse, that has grown quite a bit and isn't going to be so little.!!
Once the girls stalls were done, it was time to open his door and check his hay and water. The command BACK as I opened the door, showed him the crop and waited for him to retreat to the other side of his stall. He turned and put his butt in the far corner and looked at me. I complimented him and told him to STAY. as I proceeded to fill his hay and water. When I was done, I went over and talked to him petting his face.
Haltering was a much calmer experience. I took a few relaxing breathes before I started and moving slow and steady, he calmly put his face in his halter without all the wild head toss and smacking around we've been dealing with this week.
Now it was time to come out in the hallway and cross tie {only one side for a first time} use a lead rope to represent the other side, held in my hand or dropped to the ground once he proceeded to stand relatively still.
I cleaned his stall and talked to him, so he wouldn't get all upset standing there. {He's not learned cross tie, tie, or any form of restraint..}
Once his stall was done, we did some grooming still trying to get those balls of mud and poop off his belly. He's not fond of the water and it's way to cold still for a bathe anyway. He has been standing for the detangler sprayer and it has been helping with getting some of it off of him.
He went back in his stall when all was said and done. The girls came in for the night and I felt we had a good day.....
Day Two
Richard came out to the barn this morning to tell me that when he went in to feed Polaris his breakfast, Polaris moved to the far corner, put his butt to the wall and stood like a gentle man while his hay was being put in the bin.
Richard could tell that we had already started working on his manners !!
I was able to lead him out to the paddock and back in without incident. He came out and stood for grooming and re entered his stall without any resistance. His behavior was much more mellow, still the same silly boy, just a little more respectful.. and a lot safer to be around.
**
I've had my share of horse accidents and injuries, starting as far back as when I was 8 yrs. I've been riding horses since I was so young I don't remember, I have just seen the pictures of lil me. I've done a fair amount of rehabilitating horses, helping rescues feel safe with humans again, and done a bit of corrective training, some riding training... But.
Polaris is my first young colt, that has had no previous training and it's all up to ME - How he turns out will be a result of my work. So I am taking this quite serious in my learning as well as his. I've watched a lot of trainers, studied a lot of trainers and followed a few You Tubers that are pretty smart at what they do. Read as much as I possibly can about diet, behavior, housing comforts, riding, and what's important for my horses and myself.
And yes, sometimes I feel overwhelmed and in over my head. Then he does something spectacular like this morning and it gives me new energy and hope for the both of us.
Stay tuned for more updates on Polaris's progress. {Subscribe if your forgetful, never miss a post.}