The biggest project may start soon

[thistlebloom]

There you go! You'll have some fun with those.

I'm pretty fortunate to have a nice neighbor that lets me use her obstacle course. She built log piles for them to figure out foot placement, cross country jumps and tire obstacles. Her husband found some giant tractor tires and stacked and filled them. They are big enough for a horse to stand on four square.

 

[Bruce]

OK, the saddle is on her, does it fit properly?

 

[secuono]

OK, the saddle is on her, does it fit properly?

Idk, she humped up to toss it right after the full pic, lol. She's still jumpy today, need to halter her and try then.

Edited because autocorrect changed humped to jumped.

 

[Bruce]

OK, so she isn't real happy with it yet, hopefully that will change soon.

 

[secuono]

OK, so she isn't real happy with it yet, hopefully that will change soon.

Constantly having to go back to reintroducing a saddle is so depressing and discouraging.
I'm seriously wondering if it's a lost cause.

I wish I knew a local bronc rider who could ride her bareback. She seems far more comfortable with that idea.

But there's a couple months before the pond is warm enough, so I guess I have time to keep trying.

Haltered, still too nervous for me to let go of saddle and walk around her.

 

[thistlebloom]

I worked on saddling my mare for a long time also. I made some mistakes in being too eager to advance ahead of her comfort and that set me back a bunch. I think when they can send the saddle flying it adds extra time to the training because they have figured out that they can lose it. I have had her for 20 months now and haven't put the first ride on yet. But she is now good with the saddle, and I can even flop the cinch down on the off side without her blowing up. Mine was completely unhandled and younger, so the trust in me was possibly easier to build. I just wanted to encourage you to hang in there. They are all different, and there is not a time frame you have to meet. You can only progress as fast as their trust allows.

 

[secuono]

A calm, warm day.
Brought out the beat up tree to practice with. She walked off a couple times, but then let me put it on several times.
*phew!*
She drives me batty!

 

[secuono]

Yesterday, late in day, she refused again. I couldn't be bothered, so I left her be.

Today, she was more cooperative both times. Was able to put the pad & saddle on, but didn't cinch up, as I didn't have her on a lead.

This saddle's bar seems to end very early, before the concho! I need to examine it again more carefully and mark it.

Her shoulder bumps make it So Hard!!

No bar edge until the right side of the concho. So odd...

You see that lump?!? Arg!

Are the bars the same angle or is one wider than the other...or am I seeing things??

Lump of madness! This is saddle fully behind shoulder...

Lots of winter clearance

 

[secuono]

Nothing touches if behind based on concho. But mostly good when moved up to where I'm seeing the bar actually start.
I wonder how early the rear bars end...

 

[secuono]

Heck, it might be a decent fit for the baby gelding to really train him in.