It was finally time to start and we rode out of camp to start the day. We ended up pretty close behind another pair of horses for a time, all through the burro canyon. Once the trail opened up, the other horses quickly left us behind and we were on our own at last.
By this time, Hoss had gotten into his head he should get to stop and graze anytime he pleased. Knowing there was plenty of hay for him back at camp, I objected to this idea, and we ended up having a bit of a problem over it during the ride. He'd see grass and ask to stop. I'd say no and keep him moving. The next time, he wouldn't ask before slowing or pulling to the side of the trail to snatch a bite. I had to be really on the ball to keep him moving forward.
This bit of disagreement set the tone for much of the day. While we weren't exactly fighting, we were definitely not on the same page all the time. And sometimes, when he finds himself being thwarted, rather than simply go to work, Hoss will spend more time on defiant behavior.
That was definitely true during this ride day. He was keeping a pretty good pace, but he was certainly coming up with every excuse he could think of to do something other than simply move on down the trail. This did eventually set us up for a fight.
We were heading up hill and had just passed two other horses. For reasons not relevant now, I was uninterested in staying with those riders and just wanted to get on down the trail. Hoss had found himself the perfect opportunity to practice Not Doing What He's Told. He dislikes moving out uphill. He dislikes leaving other horses behind him. And he thought he should get to slow down, graze, or stay with the other horses if he wanted to, thank yew very much. So he was trotting, but he wasn't going in a forward manner, meaning he wasn't engaging his hindquarters to propel him forward.
A horse that is not moving forward is moving improperly. Allowed to continue in the manner, a horse is far likelier to become lame earlier in life. With Hoss's conformational challenges, if he doesn't move as he should, he'll be lame even sooner than a better put together horse would be. So it's important to me that he do what he should, and I'm not about to accept anything less.
I hadn't needed the whip up until this point, but now it was time to bust it out. Picking it up will usually cause Hoss to pay attention and do what he's supposed to, but not today. He ignored that I'd picked up the whip. I waved it at him, letting him know he'd better get his butt in gear. I got "the finger." I waved it at him harder. When that failed, I struck him over the rump with the whip. He took five steps in a forward manner and fell back off. Rinse, repeat. I think we went through this about five times, plus twice he dropped to a walk and I used the increasingly forceful barrel kick technique to get him moving again.
It isn't unusual for Hoss to get worse before he gets better. He is a Mustang. It took eleven months to break him in. He's just about as stubborn as they come. So I have to out-stubborn him, and it isn't easy. It means I cannot give up on anything I ask him. If I ask, I cannot back off, ever. He has to do it, pretty much no matter what.
It took some doing, but by the time we made the next turn Hoss had acquiesced to doing it "my" way.
Other horses caught up to us after a time, and Hoss used them as motivation for a while. I wanted to let them go, because the riders were pretty much letting them do whatever they wanted, and Hoss decided he should get to do whatever those horses were doing. So, if the rider let the horse stop and lick the snow, Hoss thought he should get to stop. It was a little frustrating. I used it as a "training moment," and managed to keep him moving at one point at which those two horses were stopped to graze.
I managed to get away from the other horses and we spent much of the rest of the ride largely alone. Hoss did get worse than usual about horses behind him, slowing earlier than usual when other horses started catching up. I would get after him a bit with heels and whip, since what I'd really like is for him to maintain his speed until I ask him to slow down to allow others to pass. That's a long term problem.
Despite our difficulties and our little spat, we finished in very good time on day 4. When we got back to camp, I discovered the promised bale of hay next to my tent. I began rolling it to the back of the trailer, much to Hoss's delight and excitement. He watched that bale eagerly. I managed to get it past him and into the trailer where I could pop it and throw out two flakes to a very grateful horse.
No comments:
Post a Comment