7 Games

So it's the beginning of a new week of training! On Sunday I got to see Pat and Linda Parelli at a clinic and get some clarification on how to do the Parelli 7 Games. When I got home I played with Nine a little bit, but saved most of it for today. I took a big white scary sheet and a smaller and not quite so scary blanket out with me, to sack Nine out a bit more. But first I had some worming to do! I de-wormed my BLM Mustang, Hammar, first, because I had to use two tubes; he basically got the "leftovers" from one tube, and a little extra from the tube Nine would get. Then Nine got the rest of the full tube. I was hoping Nine would watch Hammar (who is usually awesome for me) and get the idea that "hey, that isn't so bad!" But alas, Hammar let me down. He was tossing his head and being a doofball, but no one got hurt, so I didn't worry much and turned him out. Then it was on to Nine. I put a halter on Nine for the occasion, something I feel confident to forget about with Hammar. Then I showed Nine the tube, wiggled it around his head, and so on. He was good, so I slipped it in his mouth like a bit. He played with it a lot, but didn't toss his head, so I just waited and he eventually accepted it. Then I took it back out of his mouth, removed the cap and twisted the dosage thing. I put it back in his mouth and squeezed it on in. He tried pretty hard to spit it out! But I held his head up and I think he swallowed it...

After that I decided to put him to work so he could ignore the taste in his mouth. I got him lunging on a circle right away, but he was jumping from the sheet and blanket, which were hanging on the fence. I let him jump and spook until it seemed he was over the worming taste. Then I started on the first Game: the Friendly Game. I lead him over to the fence where the brushes were, and brushed his whole body down, including his belly and cinch area, then I brushed his mane and tail. I finally got the nerve to walk behind his butt, and he was fine! He didn't even bat an eye, and I have been dreading it all this time! Shows what I know, huh? Anyway, after that I lead him over to the fence where the blankets were hanging. I grabbed the less-scary one and let him sniff it, then rubbed him down with it and was throwing it on his back within seconds. I had to actually try to get him to spook! He was doing so well. So then it was on to the scary white sheet. At this point, it is important to note that here in Arizona it is monsoon season, and rain storms (and the wind that brings them) crop up with almost no notice at all, almost every day. So, naturally, as I lift the sheet from the fence to show Nine, a gust of wind tosses the sheet which then tries to eat Nine. So, kinda a bad way to introduce a sheet to a wild horse, but I got it folded up and showed Nine again, and he was fine. I rubbed it all over him again, and tried to toss it on his back, at which point another gust of wind awoke the slumbering horse-eating-sheet-monster. I got Nine calmed back down, then he sniffed the sheet again and let me rub him on the side of his neck and shoulder, which I decided was good enough. I put the blanket away again for another, less windy, time.

Then it was on to the next Game: the Porcupine Game! Yay! Nine has trouble moving his forequarters away from me, as he seems to think I either want him to back up or jump away from me as fast as he can. So the first try was a little shaky; he backed up when I pressed my hands to his jaw and shoulder, then jumped, but second try he moved his shoulders away from me two steps very nicely. Then I moved his hindquarters with a finger, something he has no problem with at all, and repeated from the other side. He did great. So then I backed him with a hand on his nose, and again he did fine. He isn't the most responsive horse yet, but he is getting there. The third game is the Driving Game, which is basically like the Porcupine Game, but without physical contact. You "push" with your hands towards the head and shoulders to move the forequarters, towards the flank to move the hindquarters, towards the face to back. Real easy, and Nine picked it up instantly.

The fourth game, the Yo-yo Game, is a little more challenging for Nine, because he does want to move from the end of a rope, he wants to just stand there! But he has already shown improvement and will back up with just a little wiggle in the lead rope. Then he comes forward pretty well. The Circling Game is easy for Nine because he already knows how to do it. It is basically lunging with obstacles in the way. It can also get more challenging, but for general purposes and in a 40 foot round pen, that's what it is. No problem. Then comes the Sideways Game, which is causing the horse to side pass. I haven't tried this game yet with Nine, because I feel we should master the Porcupine and Driving Games first, before I combine moving two parts of the horse at once. Lastly is the Squeeze Game, which is causing the horse to go between you and another object, getting closer and closer as the horse relaxes. I did this earlier, making Nine get closer to the sheet and blanket hanging on the fence, so I didn't bother doing doing it again at the end of the session. Besides, it was starting to rain. And the rain is gone now, but it is lunch time! So perhaps an update this afternoon.

The afternoon was rainy, so not much was done with Nine. Around feed time, though, the rain had gone away, so I decided to give Nine a little job to do; the other animals were out on the property, and thus the front gate was shut. After putting the other animals away, I planned to lead Nine down to the gate with me to open it again. However, Nine thought different! The other horses already had some of their food, and Nine didn't understand why he didn't have his food. So about halfway down to the gate, he slipped away from me and ran back to the other horses' food. I walked back and found him calmly chewing the alfalfa from over the fence. Luckily Nine let me walk right up to him and grab a hold of the lead rope. He then followed quietly away from the feed. I just lead him around a few trees, then put him back in his own pen, then fed him like usual. So it worked this time, but from now on, I think I will feed Nine before asking him to leave perfectly good alfalfa behind!