Early this week, we continued to work on our Round Penning, Desensitizing, Yielding the HQ & FQ, Flexing, Backing, Lunging Stage 1, Sending, & introduced Circle Driving. Hickory is really starting to quiet down & use the thinking side of his brain.
On Wednesday, Hickory had his Knotty Equine Equinitry session. Jen noted that he may have limited vision in his right eye. She's noticed that sight may not be 100% in horses with white in one eye. He also has a pretty sensitive mouth & that the right bar of his mouth was pretty reactive because of the right trigeminal. She noted this would be something to watch for when I introduce him to the bit. He had a severe atlas over axis overlap which affected that right trigeminal. I wish I would have pulled my phone out to video as he was clearly trying to show Jen which way his head & neck needed to be moved to relieve what he was feeling. Once horses figure out that she's there to help, they don't waste time showing her right where those places are. On a warmer day, I'll work on cleaning his sheath & check for a bean when I get the opportunity. She thought he might be dealing with some bots & recommended he be treated with something that will tackle them in a couple of weeks, so I'll do that as well. The weather threw a wrench in our plans for Thursday & today, so we'll take conformation photos on Monday when the weather is more favorable. Dentals were also moved to next Wednesday.
Next week, we'll do a first saddle with a potential first ride next weekend if he's ready. - Lexy Nuesch
Next week's update will be posted on Sunday.
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.