AQHA trail challenge

I have always wanted to do a trail challenge competition with Tex, and we did our third yesterday. This was an AQHA sponsored one with 15 or so obstacles. I was very proud of Tex, not because of him going through the obstacles- I've learned this year that he will do ANYTHING I ask him to do, so I wasn't surprised at that. I was actually more proud of him giving me a nice, decently collected trot when I asked for it. 

I was also proud of myself for something that happened during warmup yesterday. 

Before we began, I was "warming him up"'in the outdoor arena, just walking, trotting, and some limited loping did to the wetness. Hazel was tied up not far from the entry gate. Well, we got to the far side of the long arena, and Tex decided to do this thing that he does sometimes when I ride out- fake a spook.  And it's so fake that it's funny. He sticks his head up, swings his ribcage around, and runs- always in the direction of where he really wants to be. Maybe he's trying to look like an Arabian. Regardless, in the past, I've called it quits when he does that, or just slowed down to a walk and taken it easy. Well, this time, there was NO reason for it at all, and I knew that. So, I just picked up a lope and made him keep working. The lope got a little hairy when he was leaning incorrectly outside his turns with the wet dirt, though, so we brought it down to a long trot (as long as it can get with those short legs) and worked his hiney off. That's the first time I've really pushed him hard through that, and I'm proud to have stuck it out, even though it freaked me out a little bit.

Let's review his performance of the trail obstacles. 

Steps for the trail challenge 

1. Gate - open with my left hand 

Pull to me, push hindquarters around and 

Back through the gate to close it.

 I thought Tex stayed calm and listened well, but I would've liked to use less pressure to make this happen. I, however, never could figure out how to do this obstacle correctly. 

2. Suspension bridge - walk over it 

Tex barely hesitated, but then walked on over this moving 30 ft bridge. He almost stepped a back foot out a couple times.

3. Blocks (white beams- a: enter at a trot and enter at the corner AT A TROT). Keep going across the diagonals at a trot. Cross squarely at the x. 

B: circle to the right and enter again and zig zag out back whee I came in.

Terrible! We didn't stay at the trot and we hit poles and we weren't very collected.

Keep trotting to the pedestal. 

4. Trot to the pedestal, stop and  Put 2 front feet on the pedestal.  Stop. Hesitate. You can move hindquarters around if it's going well. Back off of it.

We rocked this one. Tex went right up to it and put both front feet on it like he owned it. All that pedestal work in the barn at Judson paid off well here. 

5. Walk to the barrel with two big poles. Take the longest one out of the barrel, and drag it into the corner. Make a figure 8 - one circle to the right, one circle to the left.. (I'll have to ride under the pole) at a trot. 

HOLD ON to the POLE

And then return it to the barrel. 

Well, I didn't quite grasp that we were to pivot the pole, not drag it, on my first run, so we messed that one up. But, Tex didn't mind the pole at all and did anything i asked him to do with it.

9. Go to the triangle. Keep the front feet in the triangle and disengage hips to circle around the triangle TO THE LEFT. Back out or side pass out. 

I was pretty nervous about this one. Hips over is his Tex's least favorite maneuver. But, on our first run, we just took it slow and he did it, stepping over only once that I remember. 

10. Walk around  to the other side of the plank bridge. Enter the left side, twist and ride out into the middle dirt part. 

Oops- I was so worried about my leads in the next one that I forgot the bridge on my first run! On my second run, Tex went right in there with no problems. 

 

11. Lope in LEFT LEAD to the water box. STOP quickly.

I THINK we caught the correct lead both times, but I'm still working on cueing and feeling leads myself. The stop wasn't bad for the first, and was slower for the 2nd run. 

11b: Go through the water box from

Right to left.

This was fun! Tex went up there and DRANK some of the water. Crazy horse. Then he went on through. This summer's creek riding paid off. 

12. Daisy chain/4 leaf clover pattern.

Keep inside pole on my left shoulder. First, Trot left around the middle Santa then around the satan elf to the right. 

Always turn right around the outside poles and left around the middle.

After the last outside pole, trot to the two cones. 

I was afraid I was going to break pattern on this one. But, we didn't. Tex gave me a really nice collected trot through this whole thing, and I was pumped about that! I didn't know that the purpose was to get collected, even circles though, so on my first run, I ran it like a pole pattern. On the 2nd run we made nice circles. 

13. Go get the rope with the log. Trot around the cones and then drag the log in a straight line through the cones. Keep the rope tight. Can walk or trot. 

Can back the horse to drag the log.

Return the rope where it was

Oh we rocked this one too. Team roping paid off. :) 

14. Walk through the feed bags. 

No big deal, except Tex PICKED UP one of the bags in his mouth. Looney. 

15. Trot or lope to the poles. Jump the middle pole at the middle. 

Turn right and make a pretty circle.

Jump the next pole I come to.

Turn right and jump over the next pole you come to.

Ok we sucked at this really bad. Tex knocked over all 3 I think. Lazy, lazy feet. We will be doing lots more work on this, and I will go ride him in the thick dirt at Clinton arena to make him pick up those feet. 

I'm so proud of this little free Craigslist horse to have come so far. 

These are pictures from his Craigslist ad at 2 yrs old in 2009.

This was taken at the challenge yesterday in 2014. He's still a lazy goofball shorty, but a very brave one. 

Adopting a timid varmint dog

Ever since our Aussie mix went on up to heaven, we have been having a lot deer and armadillos coming up closer to our house. Poor Jetta just isn't a very aggressive dog. She's so small and sweet! Additionally, many of our neighbors have sighted a black bear on their game cameras. I'm not too worried about the bear eating our kids or anything, but I certainly don't want it to come close to the house.
So, we decided that we needed a varmint dog. We adopted Shelly this past Wednesday. At my best guess, she is a German shepherd mixed with a cur?
It was a hard decision to pick a dog out of the many available.
Shelly seems territorial, depressed, and timid. I think that once she learns where home is, she will be very protective of it.

Riding alone

Tonight Josh let me bring Hazel to the Clinton arena while he had a meeting there, and I had the arena to myself for over an hour. I had forgotten how much I enjoy riding alone. The orange sand/clay in the covered arena was very deep and freshly broken up. The lights were bright. Hazel had already been ridden once today, and she was pretty in tune and ready to go. The weather cooled off a little after dark. And there was no one to talk to- just me and Hazel, working on our horse-rider relationship. 

In one hour we worked on correct turns, stopping, loping, speed control, speed cues, side passing, opening gates, throwing a rope around her head, heels, and body, ground tying, flexing at the poll, and giving to leg pressure.

It was so peaceful- only an occasional semi truck passing by on the highway and the crickets singing.

Hazel was amazing. She is so eager to please. The deep footing wore her out quickly, so we took frequent breaks. 

She did great, but tonight was about more than that- it was a reminder that I CAN do this, and that I love to just ride. I CAN ride and work a good horse. And I love a break from my work that requires a different type of creative and analytical thought.

TM 

South Louisiana Fig Smoothies for breakfast

Figs are in season now, and the tree outside my kitchen screen door is really flourishing this year. Figs from this tree don't preserve very long at room temp nor in the refrigerator. Last year I made lots of fig preserves, but I still have lots of the jars left over from last year, even after giving some away. So, I was wondering what to do with hundreds of figs that will be coming in the next two weeks, and I think I've found some ideas.

First, I ate some fresh off the tree. 

Then, I took some for snack to work with me.

Then, I gave a bowl away to my friend.

Then, I still had some left, and decided to add them to my semi/somewhat/sometimes weekly smoothie mixes, and now I'm actually excited to have one! Here's what all input in each quart sized ziplock bag before I stuck it in the freezer:

About 1/2 of a large banana, cut into pieces. (I found mine on clearance at the grocery store) and already had them cut up and frozen.

A handful of blueberries from my grandparents' garden that we picked on the Fourth of July.

About 8 figs, cut in half.

One packet of Splenda.

1 TB flaxseed meal

2 heapin TB raw oatmeal.

I made 5 baggies this time, because usually after 5 of the same flavor I'm ready for something new. 

TM

Blog name change pending

As my life has progressed over the last 5 years, so much has taken place that is worth blogging about in this personal blog. Training Tex has been put on the back burner many times due to having babies, moving, and just life in general. Plus , I feel like my journey with Tex has slowed down, and there's less to say. He's not perfect, and not done, but he's rideable and versatile- enough that I can leave him in the pasture for a month, and pull him out and use him for a rodeo. I can't believe that he is 7 years old. 

Now, Hazel Mae (Miss Poco 349) is on the horizon of my horse world, and my daughter has taken to riding Tex more. There is much life here to blog about- the garden growth, canning, cooking, the kids' outdoor adventures, the chickens, dogs, cat, and many other wild animals that come across our path unexpectedly. Therefore, I'm going to change the name of this blog to encompass all that will be on here- My Louisiana Country Life. If you'd like to follow me on instagram, see the hashtag #mylouisianacountrylife, or find me at @taratmorris.

Later gator. 

TM

LASH show. Let's just say it could've gone a lot better.

A few weeks ago, I went and competed on Tex in a stock horse show for the first time. I wanted to do it so I could see where I need to improve in my training on him. For two weeks, I rode as much as possible to prepare for my first time to try the Louisiana stock horse association show with Tex. Doing one of these shows, and eventually competing in a whole season of them, has been a goal of mine for a long time.  

During the weeks before, I practiced hard with Tex on transitions, because I knew there was a ranch pleasure class involved. But, it looks like I should've focused on a lot of other things, much sooner.

Collection, starting in a smooth, collected lope, and correct leads were very important for success in the stock horse show ring. Guess whose horse stinks at ALL of those things?? 

I didn't expect to win. My first goal was to not be the last place in each part I competed in. My second goal was to learn things to work on with Tex. 

The good news is, according to my goals going into this, I succeeded. I came in 2nd to last and 3rd to last on pleasure and reining, respectively, but I did come in last on the trail competition. And oh boy, did I realize that I have a lot to learn. 

The bad news is that I was VERY discouraged when I left the show. The level my horse needs to be at to begin competing in the "novice" (lowest) class doesn't even seem achievable to me with the knowledge I have now. I don't see any way that I could ever teach a horse how to do the things these horses were doing. I would have to hire a professional, I think. 

The horses against me in the novice class were sooooo nice. Apparently, the novice class is for "novice to this competition" riders, but not necessarily for "novice to this competition" horses. 

I felt honored to see such great horse men and women around me, and I definitely saw some talented horses. But I won't be going back to compete for a while. I really do wish that there had been a class for truly beginner horses AND riders who were just starting out in these ranch horse competitions. The whole experience left me discouraged and disappointed in myself.

TM 

 

A little evening family trail ride

We just returned from a short family trail ride. My girl and I rode double on Tex, while our little boy rode on a horse my husband is training. Here is when I got off to get the gate.

Tex is doing better with neck reining, but we still have a little ways to go. 

Fourth of July is my favorite.

Fourth of July has always been my favorite holiday! Just like Olaf on Frozen would say, "I've always loved the idea of summer." I love that there are no gifts and not much family expectations on the fourth- it's more of a free-for-all, friend-oriented holiday, complete with warm beautiful weather, fireworks, watermelon, and the smell of barbecue. We usually spend it on the river watching the boats go by, picking and shelling peas, or just eating a lot and visiting with family. 

I hope you remember to take some pictures and enjoy the little things this Fourth of July weekend. 

TM

A really for-real roping

Last night we went to a round robin roping for Josh to enter up, and I had planned to just work the cows and hang out. On the way to the roping, I told Josh, "If the guy would ever put on a cheaper roping, I would enter up." Well, when we got there, not many people came and entered, and the announcer said "This will be a $60 entry fee." I looked at Josh, and he said "you're entering up."  I had never been in a roping competition before! I was wishing I had not said anything about entering into a cheaper roping.

Oh boy- then I started getting nervous! I actually HAD to try hard to catch for my heelers. I hadn't roped out of the box in at least two months. Tex was a little out of shape.

But, we had to get it done, and we did . In a round robin, every header ropes with every heeler, so I had 4 chances to go back to the 2nd round. The first steer was with my friend Adam heeling. I caught it, sort-of turned it, and Adam caught heels, but I forgot to hold and stretch the ropes out! I let go too early. 

Then I caught the next two and turned them too. On one of them my heeler caught, which meant me and that guy went to the 2nd round together. On my fourth steer, Tex got me a little too close and I didn't put him in position to set us up for success. On the 2nd round, my poor pony with the short legs couldn't keep up with the fast steer, and we simply got outrun. 

I didn't win, but I tried my dangdest to, and Tex did too. He ran hard and fast, and tracked really well. I was proud of both of us. He'll never be much of a competitive heading horse. You truly need a bigger horse with longer legs to be able to keep up with the steer. But, I'll probably never be much of a competitive header either. I'm happy to just have "adventures with Tex" (and Hazel).

TM

A word from the trainer about the first 30 days of training

Josh, (also known as "husband") has been putting the first thirty days of riding on Hazel, and has graciously agreed to write a guest blog post. I would never, ever pester him until he agreed to do this. No, never.:) 

But really, I have backed off all training on Hazel because I feel like the riding is enough for now. When she gets done with a ride, I think she deserves the night off from other stuff, except maybe a brushing or something. Plus, the horseflies have been TERRIBLE at dusk, which is when I usually work my horse. Horsefly season around here lasts for just a few weeks and then they're gone, but they really make the horses miserable for those few weeks, even with fly spray. 

Without further delay, here is what Josh says about Miss Hazel Mae Perkins Morris. 

Hazel is very smart and is picking up on things really fast.
Some of her strengths lie in her natural ability to turn on her hind end.  She can really turn around well and crosses over perfectly.  For just 10 rides she is coming along really well.
She has had a phenomenal stop from the first ride and has kept it throughout.  We started yesterday learning to yield to leg pressure and she is catching on pretty well.  Still not as soft with it as i would like but she is coming on strong.

Her weaknesses will be haunting us for a while in that she is 4 years old and already starting to get set in her ways. She is still pretty heavy and trying to get away from the bit.  Slowly she is coming around.  Her reverse leaves a lot to be desired.

Hazel has the mind and body to do all that we want her to do such as roping, ranch rodeos, kid horse, stock horse, and trail (though this may take a little longer).

Today we continued on yielding to leg pressure and getting soft in the bridle.  I think this will come faster once the stinking horse flies are gone in a few weeks.  I do think that if you can get them to pay attention with those things biting them all over then you will have a nice horse in the end.  We also worked on getting a decent back up (more than 1 step).  Toward the end of the ride she finally got soft to the pressure and backed up quite a few steps, and I immediately stopped and got off( it was that good).

She is still going to need work on getting soft in the bridle and separating her hips from her shoulders.  That will come much later, but if she will learn now how to give to pressure anywhere that will make things much easier and progress that much faster.

Day 10- And her name is...

Last night's ride was in a new location - at the retreat center arena - with me riding Tex around the arena, and lots of poles, tires, and obstacles around. Josh didn't take the mare over any of the obstacles, but he did ride her for a solid 15 minutes. She really tries to please. So far she has not swished her tail or pinned her ears in irritation at all. She stops almost naturally.

I have decided to call her Hazel Mae. :)

Here is a link to her first ride.
TM

Day 9- the first ride

The mare's first ride was much longer and more advanced than I was expecting. Josh wants to put the first 30 days on her just to put an experienced foundation on her for me. I have mixed feelings about this. On one hand, I agree. It seems like a great idea for someone who has put the first 30 days on many horses to do this, so that there's no room to mess this up. On the other hand, I am sad and want to do this myself. It's a growth process for me as much as it is the horse, and I would like to try it again to see if I can do better this time. Plus, I'm afraid that I won't feel as proud of her progress if I don't do it myself. I feel a bit torn, but I think I'm going to trust Josh on this one, and hopefully not regret it.
TM

The mare's first...

Day 8- I learned when to stop

Tonight I didn't get to work the mare until around 9:30 pm. I was sleepy and a little fuzzy in my thinking. I left her unsaddled and just lunged left and right at the walk, with some direction changes. Josh gave me a little feedback on my direction changing methods, which I was thankful for. He told me to get rid of the stick and just use my body, and he was right- it gave her clearer signals and gave me less to worry about in my hands. She really started watching my body language tonight, particularly my feet. Perhaps this is because horses may watch other horses' feet closely.

Speaking of other horses , one thing that I've been pretty happy with is how respectful this mare is of my space. At the Perkins ranch, they don't handle their horses much. They pull them out of the pasture as yearlings to halter-break them, and then put them back out to pasture, only handling enough to deworm and vaccinate them. This mare has been in a herd for four years, and I am appreciative of what healthy respect habits she has learned from the other horses in her herd. It's quite a bit different than Tex was. He was more of a spoiled pet when I got him at two years old, and it took a while to get him OFF of me.

Anyway, back to lunging. I was lunging along at a walk, in the (mostly) dark, asking her to change directions here and there, and she did it well. So, I added something- I asked her to trot and then change directions at the trot. It was a little soon for that, so I took it back down to the walk. Well, I got bored with that, so I kissed twice to ask her to come back up into the trot, holding my sending arm high. Then, I dropped my arm down and said "easy" to ask her to slow down. She did it nearly immediately, two or three times (which was amazing).

THIS IS WHEN I SHOULD HAVE STOPPED!
but no....

I let my fuzzy brain decide to do it both directions and "really solidify it." Well, in the next ten minutes I'm pretty sure both of us got nothing but more confused. It was around 9:45 by this time. I couldn't think clearly, I wasn't cueing correctly, and she was trying her hardest to please me but she just couldn't figure out what I wanted, and by then, neither could I. Josh then gently stepped in and helped me find a stopping place- I brought her back down to the walk, asked for one direction change, which she did well, and then left it at that.

I'm proud of myself for not getting totally frustrated and giving up, nor blaming my horse. It wasn't her fault, and really, I learned the lessons tonight. I hope I don't make too many of these mistakes. I'm also thankful to have a good assistant helping me stay on track- one who has gotten gentler and more encouraging with his instructions over the past few years.

Day 7

Today the kids were tired and I didn't have a lot of time to work with the mare. I saddled her up, not too gently, lunged to the right and left, working on quicker direction changes. I flexed her to both sides, then added a hips-over while flexing. I picked all four feet, and she gave me a little trouble on the back right. But, when I say trouble with her, it's really a light term. I truly believe I just had my hand in the wrong place and she was trying to do the right thing and get away from pressure.
If we had not had so much rain, I would have gotten on the mare yesterday or today. However, the ground is too slick, and there is too much room for a traumatic error.

The history of the man behind the Perkins Ranch

http://www.bscenemag.com/cover-story/health-wealth-horses

Miss Poco 349- a day-by-play

Miss poco 349-
Day 1- May 26, 2014
Getting a saddle on her.
I started with the blanket, and within 5 minutes she was ready for it to be on her back. I only had intentions of blanketing, but she was so receptive to it that I went ahead and put a saddle on her. In fact, she was so gentle we thought that she may actually be broke after all, and that there was a mistake in the sale catalog! To test that in one manner, we put a snaffle bit in her mouth to see if she knew what to do. It was new to her, but she only chewed on it for about 10 minutes and then settled down to her happy place, holding it still in her mouth, head down. I saddled her again that night and picked her feet up. She was quick to respond to pressure.

Day two - figuring out what she knows
I saddled and flapped the stirrups around. She was a little spooky. At one point while she was tied she got a stirrup caught on the fence and did a little hop.
She obviously is not broke- she snorts at every little thing, gets the white-eyed look at the blanket, steps away from the saddle in fear, and doesn't open her mouth for the bit.
However, it won't be hard to get her that way if I take it easy.
I got the stick out and did a little poking and prodding on her shoulders, neck, and hips to see if she knew to step away from me. She didn't know it, but she picked it up faster than any horse I've ever worked with.

Day 4- Sneaking the Fly Spray
It's horsefly season, and horse spray is a necessity to keep these poor horses sane during this time of year. The mare wasn't crazy about the spraying yesterday. Today, on top of saddling and letting her hold the bit in her mouth, I brushed her while holding the fly spray in the other hand. I would brush and brush, and then when she wasn't looking, nonchalantly spray the fly spray, and when she would look to see what was going on, keep brushing. I'm not a fan of sneaking things onto my horse, but I see no reason for a big battle about this. She noticed it after I had sprayed a few times and stepped away from me. She'll get better at this within a few days.

Day 5- The Day Off

Day 6- progress on the feet, direction changes while lunging, and being ground tied, flexing laterally.
Today I saddled her up and instead of gently placing the saddle on there, I slung it up onto her back. She only startled a little and then settled right back down.
We lunged at the walk because the ground is wet. She did her direction changes a little rough, but improved with work. By the end of the session it wasn't pretty, but she was at least understanding correctly what I was looking for in the direction changes and doing it willingly.
WILLING would be a really great word to add to this horse's description.
She held up all four feet well enough to pick the mud out of all four of them for the first time.
Ground tying is one of the LASH association's trail obstacles, so we began that today. I led for a while, then deliberately chunked the long lead rope onto the ground in a pile in front of the mare. Then, I took small steps backward while facing her, and if she moved as much as one foot, I would correct her and put that foot back in place. At first she wanted to follow me, and I would back her. Then, she began just moving one foot forward, and seemed to even make moving that one foot a game- she would move it forward, and I would move it back. Then, as I was stepping away, she would move it forward again. She did this a few times, and had it not been a training session I would've been entertained. After three tries and a little more firmness on my part she got the hang of it and obeyed 100 percent, holding completely still as I walked 4 steps away. We'll add more distance later.

Today I was rattling a feed sack over her stall to get her used to loud noises, and when she got startled, she got down LOW and cut a 90 degree angle away from me. It was absolutely beautiful.

This mare literally picks up things after no more than four times of doing it, and lateral flexing for the first time today was no exception to that. It's so easy that it's almost boring to talk about.

I'm still toiling over finding the right name for this smart, willing, gentle, snorty gal...

Welcome, Miss Poco 349 from the Perkins Ranch

Many moons ago, a skinny cowboy from Louisiana found himself out of a job in Tyler, TX, while his girlfriend had just started a new job in Tyler and didn't want to quit just yet. He heard about a job opening at a ranch just outside Tyler in Flint, TX. The ranch needed someone to put the first rides on their cutting bred quarter horses. He brought his saddle and himself out for the "interview," and was hired on the spot, probably more due to his age, body shape, and honesty than his experience. For the next four cold, winter months, he rode some of the finest two year old horses he had ever seen or experienced horseback. He then decided that one day, he would really like to own one of those horses.

That next March he left the job to marry his sweetheart and move with her and his backyard-bred half-Arabian horse to the Texas hill country to manage 23 horses at a Christian camp and live on a quite
low ministry income for three years.

When they got ready to have children, the couple couldn't resist the opportunity to move back home to Louisiana for a little more income and a much closer commute to family.

Within the first year, the ranch in Tyler advertised a horse sale, and the skinny cowboy saved up enough money to buy one of the cheapest horses at the sale- a two-year-old bay gelding he called Sonny.

Sonny was a very calm, cowy horse who was easy to train, and the skinny cowboy had big dreams of starting back into team roping on him. But as fate would have it, in October of the horses fourth year, Sonny came down with a very severe colic and had to be put down.

The cowboy later had other horses to ride, but his dream horse's life had been cut short.

Three years, two kids, and many team ropings later, the cowboy heard about the old man he had worked for having a horse dispersal sale, and the skinny cowboy's wife told him to go pick her out a horse, just so he would go to the sale and get something for himself as well.

He studied hard each day before the sale auction began, just to make sure he didn't miss any options. For her, he picked out a short, stocky dun 4 year old unbroke mare- Miss Poco 349. For himself , he purchased a tall , stout, team roping prospect- a red roan- Red Hot Flasher.

His wife was overjoyed with her horse, and he was proud of his gelding from the Perkins Ranch. They saddled and worked their horses every day of the week after the kids went bed. They hauled them and started from scratch on their trianing together, on their dream horses- the Perkins Ranch horses.

Miss Poco 349- day 4 of living at our house. May 29, 2014

Roping practice -- better than drinking.

I have finally realized why roping practice is so wonderful. I arrive and saddle up. Two or three hours later I look up and realize that I haven't once worried about my kids, or thought about what client's stuff I forgot to finish, or remembered the people I forgot to call back. I have forgotten how scattered my house is, or what I need to do for church. My car repairs and my future schedule for the week have been furthest from my mind. My payroll taxes, upcoming marketing projects, extended family duties, and fear of failing others have all disappeared without me knowing it. Roping practice is two hours of pure, focused, ME time. For an ADD business owner, mom of two young ones, someone who feels like she's constantly jumping from one problem or project to the next, that's magical. It makes me forget my problems and let go of all that anxiety better than drinking ever did.
Cheers.

Light bulb

This week has been a "light bulb" week for Tex, and I am wondering how it happened. At team roping practice this week, he all of a sudden started neck reining. Tonight at team sorting, Tex crouched down and turned about 45 degrees to really get after a cow- without me asking him to. It wasn't even crossing my mind that he would go after that cow, and it caught me off guard. Both of these instances (beck reining and cutting) were unexpected, but awesome.

I had just been thinking last week and wondering how I could get him to pick up neck reining. What went right all of a sudden on Wednesday? Is this normal for a horse to just suddenly one day have the light bulb come on? Or, was it something I did?

And, why, all of a sudden, did he crouch down and cut like a cutting horse at team sorting? He has never put that much effort out for me. I've never seen him move like that at all, for any reason (although I've daydreamed of it!)

The only thing I have been working on myself is trying not to nitpick him, and slowing down my cues.
In the past, I've been sometimes spontaneous and sudden with my cues. I would ask him to go left, and then all of a sudden, ask him to go right. I would ask him to stop, and then GO, without much warning. I'd cue for him to dun fast to the steer, then suddenly slow him down. But, after watching a little bit of a Julie Goodnight video (what bit I could stay awake through), I realized that it's good to give a little bit of a pre-cue to my horse, to let him know that I'm about to cue for something. I began slowing down when I was cueing, which included using my seat and calf more before I used my spur or rein.

Maybe it was that. Or maybe it was just a light bulb... Either way, I'm one happy horse owner today.