And the only one who was scared was Izzy...

So much for my spooky Halloween jumps! The only horse that gave them more than a passing glance was nutty Izzy. Kitten appreciated them at least.

This week I am going to try harder to create a jump that will cause some reactions from the horses! The plan is to create a jump so rider's can work on feeling when they CAN leave their horse alone to the jump, and when they should support the ride a little more. We are still going to follow the idea of setting them up for success and then leaving them alone, and then correcting the issue if one comes up, but in the case of a spooky jump, that correction may have to come in front of the jump in the form of correcting a rushing horse by taking with the reins, correcting a backed off horse with a cluck, kick or tap with the crop, or correcting a wiggly horse with leg and hand. Regardless though, we want to make sure we leave the horse mostly alone at the jump so they do not feel punished for jumping, or interfered with at the jump.

Flat work will involve leg yielding again, but leg yielding OFF the track. This is harder in some ways as the horse has less of an idea of the plan, and is more likely to get stuck to the wall, but easier in some ways as you are more likely to be straight prior to starting the leg yield, and the horse is less likely to get crooked as it doesn't have a wall to get crooked towards! We are going to be leg yielding towards a target and it is SO important that you actually LOOK towards the target and time your leg yield to get to the target at the right time, no sooner or later. This helps prevent the horse from feeling overly pressured and getting stuck or crooked as a result.

Stay warm and watch out for the ice!

Karen