Carrie S has been working alongside Ranger on the ground, and recently brought him into the groundwork portion of the August Joel Conner horsemanship clinic. Here’s what she has to say about this special, spotted guy:
“Ranger participated in his third Joel Conner clinic in August. In horsemanship clinics we spend lots of time asking the horses to move their bodies in all sorts of directions. Horses that know they can move freely are typically much safer to be around. If something spooks them and the only way they think they can move their body is exactly the place where you are standing, well that could mean you get knocked to the ground. I can tell you that Ranger now has so much more range in where he thinks he can move. A few days before the clinic, when I was taking Ranger out of the grass paddock, one of the hotwire strings got tangled around his back leg and gave him a surprising jolt. Because of his training, instead of escaping the surprise scary thing by running over the top of me, he moved backward away from me and then jumped is hind end away from the hot wire. One hop back, one hop of the hindquarters sideways, and then stood still looking to me for direction. This horse!! He managed his prey instincts and trusted his human to sort things out.
Ranger was worked in the groundwork portion of the clinic. The more balanced he becomes on the ground, the more balanced he will be as a riding horse. He’s heavy on his front end, which makes it harder for him to pivot on his hindquarters. He also has a tendency to lean into a bend, dropping his inside shoulder. And sometimes tripping because of that. Much of the clinic was focused on being able to move freely backward, followed by moving his front quarters, while carrying a saddle. We will continue with this part of his education as he gains confidence in his own body and balance. Ranger is a really cool guy to work with. He has tons of try and is really steady around other horses and can keep his head in the midst of 15 horses all working through their triggers in a tight space.”
