This week, we continued to spend some time in the arena & finished most of our rides in the pastures.
The more horses you work with, the more you realize that not all of them can be molded into the "perfect" horse by our standards. Cactus is perfect in his own way, just like we are. Sometimes, if we try to perfect one area, another area suffers. While he's made incredible improvements in his softness to contact, he's not a horse that enjoys being ridden with constant/frequent contact & that's completely okay.
I've been quite happy with how Cactus' lope has progressed during his time here (captured in the video to be added later). The key is to stay out of his mouth, as that seems to be what causes him to get a bit "rushy." Some horses do well with more contact & guidance. Some even rely on it to a degree. Cactus doesn't fall into that category. I'll share some additional thoughts on his "strengths & weaknesses" in the video I took today once it's posted.
This weekend, Cactus will, once again, tag along to help give lessons this weekend in Pierce.
Next week, we'll continue to review what we've been working on for the past year as we prepare for pick-up soon.
- Lexy Nuesch
Next week's update will be posted on Saturday.
I do my best to get these updates posted in a timely manner, but it's not uncommon for me to be outside until after dark, depending on the weather, my schedule, & who gets worked when so updates will sometimes be posted quite late in the evening. Don't be alarmed if you don't see your update right away. In rare cases, I may have to push them until the next morning, but I'll reach out & let you know if so.