Game of Contact Update

It has been two and a half weeks since I started playing with the Game of Contact. In that time, I have been focusing on confidence: getting Sonny to be confident with the bit in his mouth and figure out what to do with it. We have done plenty of bit isolations, he now takes the bridle without a treat, and I have been riding him in it (but without reins).

Yesterday was my first day attaching reins to the bridle since October of 2009. Since Sonny has had bad experiences with bits in the past (the same probably goes for almost all 'pleasure' horses), I wanted this to be such an awesome experience. I was nervous that he would get worried once he felt pressure on the reins, so I tried to use them as little as possible. At the same time, I needed to start using them some or else I would never be able to use a bridle. I started using my reins along the rail, playing with "light and late". I barely touched them, just enough for him to recognize something changed. He responded beautifully! I did a few cloverleaf patterns and used my reins as light as possible as my phase 4 to keep him on track. Again, he responded appropriately to the lightest touch. I am guessing Parelli people might be the only ones to understand this, but it really made me so emotional. Here is a horse that used to go completely inside himself if you even brought the bridle out, and now he is riding around confidently like its nothing. I am so thankful to have such a wonderful partner, who has taught me the importance of patience and taking the time it takes. No one could have showed me better than he did!

Today I started playing with stage one in the saddle, which is "reins mean go". He almost knocked me out of the saddle; he caught on so fast! In the DVDs, Linda has a really challenging time with Aspen (which is great, because that really prepared me for the worst!). After warming up freestyle today, I put the reins on, played with fluid rein and then stage one. After about 10 minutes or less, I was picking up the reins and he would power forward!!!! How cool is that, especially since he is LBI? Never, ever would I have guessed my 'lazy' LBI would so quickly learn that when I pick up my reins he needs to go forward. Awesome! He isn't stretching as much as Aspen and Bobbie Sox did in the DVDs, but stretching is stage two. So the fact that we went from no reins, to reins mean go in two days, well I can't be anything but happy with that :). I am so, incredible proud of Sonny, and so thankful for a horse that tries his heart out for me.

Day 1 of reins attached