Starlight’s Training Adventure!

[cassie123]

Star was excited to go outside this morning! View attachment 1722459
View attachment 1722462

Awwwwww!!!!! He is adorable!

 

[sassysarah]

Star was excited to go outside this morning! View attachment 1722459
View attachment 1722462

Awe!!!❤❤❤

 

[Cadence A Waller]

Ok. Get ready for a long post. This afternoon I took star on a walk around our property. We walked through water and star got to see the chickens. During that whole time she didn’t seem overly nervous about any of it. But then we come to a small little steep hill.

I didn’t think much of it as we have walked by that hill many times, but I guess I have never asked star to walk up it until now. Well she walked a little ways up... then everything went sour. She bolted up rearing and bucking. Then she bolted back down. Then I tried calming her down and getting her back up the hill without spooking. It didn’t work. The same thing happened. I didn’t want to do the same thing again so I did the only thing I could think of in thr moment. We were very close to the pasture gate so I managed to put her in the pasture and she showed me all of the energy she had. After cantering, galloping, and bucking for a couple minutes she came back to me and I put her halter back on. I lead her around the pasture a little and she was very well mannered then back to that hill we went. I got her half way up. Then she walked down. So I decided to meet her half way, I had her do circles, she went halfway up the hill then came back down. After a little bit of that I stopped her halfway up the hill. I pet, praised her, and let her nibble a little grass. Then asked her to take another step up the hill. She did. I pet, praised her, and let her eat some grass. We continued this until we were all the way up the hill. When we were up there I tried to keep her attention on me. I had her yield her hindquarters and back up. The rest of the walk was pretty uneventful. So my question is, what went wrong? What could I have done better? What would you have done in that situation? Any advice is appreciated. I am sure I did a million things wrong but I just did all I could think to do in the moment. Thanks in advance!

 

[Cadence A Waller]

Here are a couple pics I took before our problems started.

 

[SA Farm]

Sounds like typical yearling nonsense to me
You did great! Got her energy out and got her up the hill calmly
I once led a yearling past a bunch of burdock. We went past it literally every single day but every so often he’d lose his mind over it - like it was out to get him. I just let him monkey around (controlled around me within the length of the lead rope) until he was ready to see if it really was as scary as he randomly decided it had to be. Of course it wasn’t, so he sniffed at it, walked around it a few times, then I finished turning him out. What a goose

 

[Cadence A Waller]

Ok! Glad it is normal yearling nonsense! My number one goal is that I am safe around her at all times even when she is freaking out. So if this happens again and I am not near the pasture I should let her canter around me. What should I do if she turns her butt to me when she is freaking out? I am going to take her up that hill again tomorrow - this time prepared for a spook. She’s a stinker.

 

[cassie123]

Ok. Get ready for a long post. This afternoon I took star on a walk around our property. We walked through water and star got to see the chickens. During that whole time she didn’t seem overly nervous about any of it. But then we come to a small little steep hill.View attachment 1722617
I didn’t think much of it as we have walked by that hill many times, but I guess I have never asked star to walk up it until now. Well she walked a little ways up... then everything went sour. She bolted up rearing and bucking. Then she bolted back down. Then I tried calming her down and getting her back up the hill without spooking. It didn’t work. The same thing happened. I didn’t want to do the same thing again so I did the only thing I could think of in thr moment. We were very close to the pasture gate so I managed to put her in the pasture and she showed me all of the energy she had. After cantering, galloping, and bucking for a couple minutes she came back to me and I put her halter back on. I lead her around the pasture a little and she was very well mannered then back to that hill we went. I got her half way up. Then she walked down. So I decided to meet her half way, I had her do circles, she went halfway up the hill then came back down. After a little bit of that I stopped her halfway up the hill. I pet, praised her, and let her nibble a little grass. Then asked her to take another step up the hill. She did. I pet, praised her, and let her eat some grass. We continued this until we were all the way up the hill. When we were up there I tried to keep her attention on me. I had her yield her hindquarters and back up. The rest of the walk was pretty uneventful. So my question is, what went wrong? What could I have done better? What would you have done in that situation? Any advice is appreciated. I am sure I did a million things wrong but I just did all I could think to do in the moment. Thanks in advance!

WOW!!!!!!!!

 

[SA Farm]

If your lead rope is long enough you can spin the end of it like a helicopter to warn her off while you focus on controlling her head.
She should instinctively move her butt away from the spinning.

ETA: I realize my description isn’t quite clear enough... when you spin the rope you do it so the whirling won’t hit her - I guess more like a fan than a helicopter in orientation. Hard to describe clearly I’m better at doing than explaining lol

 

[Cadence A Waller]

Ok! Thank you!!! I will tell you guys how it goes tomorrow!

 

[Animals45]

I forgot is Starlight 3 years old?