The Mustang Diaries: Kai-ju Catch-up

I have not been keeping up with Kai's progress so I'm going to make one longer post to catch everyone up to speed. This handsome man is FULLY UNDER SADDLE! We have had a total of 5 rides to date and he is doing so well! His groundwork is spot-on and he is learning how to be a safe and reliable partner from on top.

For the initial 3-4 rides it is a 2-person ordeal at our facility; one person in the saddle and the other in the center of the training arena. The only jobs of the person on the horse's back is to hold on, be confident, and shut the horse down if it's need. The individual on the ground is actually the one in control of the whole situation. A Lot of pressure was on Joe for this one as he was my ground guide and it was his first time going through a horse's first ride in this way! We did make sure to practice this dance a couple of times on one of the other mustangs, Cash, before doing it for real with Kai.

Unfortunately, I did end up falling off during Kai's first ride. However, after reviewing the ride and the videos it became clear that it was all my fault as I was putting too much pressure on Kai to move his feet forward. I could tell Joe was getting tired and I was trying to help him by adding leg pressure, clucking, and using the end of my rein to keep Kai moving without as much pressure from Joe. This led to Kai being confused and overwhelmed by the pressure from the saddle and the ground and he threw a small tantrum, in which I met the sand. Thank goodness for soft sand! Joe and I discussed how to adjust our team tactics and I immediately got back on and Kai did wonderful the rest of the ride.

Footage of me falling off Kai on his first ride. Can you tell that Kai was overwhelmed? Our little girl was just off screen and listening to music. I did not choose the soundtrack to this video!

The remainder of Kai's rides (2-5) we have been working on weaning off the person on the ground and gaining control of speed and direction in the saddle. Our most recent ride number 5, Joe barely had to control anything as most of the inputs were able to come from me, on Kai's back. It seems like the most challenging thing for Kai is to get into and hold a loping or canter gait with direction coming from the rider. For ride number 6 we will try to go from start to finish without a ground guide. The remainder of his rides (2-5) we have been working on weaning off the person on the ground and gaining control of speed and direction in the saddle. Our most recent ride number 5, Joe barely had to control anything as most of the inputs were able to come from me, on Kai's back. It seems like the most challenging thing for Kai is to get into and hold a loping or canter gait with direction coming from the rider. For ride number 6 we will try to go from start to finish without a ground guide.

Images of trot and canter from rides 2 and 3