Learning the Ropes

Recently, we had this young man recruit our horses to add to the skill set he needs for a wrangler position he's about to step into. Rely and Ellie were glad to oblige. Rely, learned to neck rein for the crash-course. Hence the hackamore.

Getting in rhythm with Rely takes balance and finesse. You can see he got it! If you think that much suspension (see all four feet off the ground) is easy to sit, try it!
The all-terrain choice is Ellie. She's like riding a four wheeler (nearly as wide).

Longing is something that requires practice to master. Here's the end result. See the earlier requests of Rely. He was much more cooperative this time around.



Of course, saddling is an essential skill. Getting a saddle on Rely tight is an art. He has no withers. The bridling, too, took some practice.
Learning to read horse body-language lesson was provided by Rely & Ellie.
And Rely and Grace.
By the end of the second session; they were seeing eye-to-eye.