More stuff!

Hottie got her feet trimmed today! I had to walk her 2 blocks away to my house where the farrier was. I again was in the middle of the street when thankfully a person I knew rode by on a horse! Thanks Mary! She lead us all the way to my house and in the gate. DONKEY BUTT! She is mule like, she plants herself and thats where she stays. So to get back, I brought Dixie as moral support to Hottie's house and both my girls were awesome. She just needs more experience outside of the backyard at Caren's and she will be ok eventually by herself. Tomorrow I am hoping that mom will come ride Dixie and I can ride Hottie on the trail so she gets more confidence. Hopefully, I will get some pictures too!

Lovin the cute black mare....

I have the cutest black gaited mustang mare! Yesterday I didn't write about her because she was behaving like a "donkey butt" (sydney says that) I was riding her in the round pen and she would walk 3 steps and stop, walk 3 steps and stop, walk 3 steps and stop. She decided her shadow with me on her is something she won't walk across! DUH... I kicked and kicked and kicked and kicked. I never got too mad but was really frustrated so I took her in the big ring out of the round pen and she walked 4 steps and stopped walked 4 steps and stopped. So I put her up.

Today we didn't go anywhere near the round pen. We just rode in the arena. I took a little bat with a hand shaped noise maker on the end for some extra encouragement and she went around! She was awesome today. She has the smoothest little jog I have ever sat. She is for sure gaited. She is going to look so fancy with all that black forelock and mane. I can totally see that hooky neck with the mecate and bosal! She is going to be a awesome little western pleasure mare down the road!

She loads!

When I got to Hottie today she was at the back of her stall looking at the property next door with her head up as far as she could get it! She then started running around the stall and back to the same spot. I got her halter and went in caught her and looked over to see what the fuss was about. MINIS! I know there are no wild miniature horses so I guess these are very interesting to her. Im not quite sure what she thinks they are but they do put her over the edge. I proceeded to take her from her chosen viewing location and she protested by trying to drag me back. When that didn't work she reared up and struck out (not at me) to show how displeased she was with my choice of her having to leave. Then we got to the door of the box stall and she tried her best to get back to her viewing spot. To no avail she gave in and went to the arena. I proceeded to lunge her to try to get some of the adrenaline out of her she was worked up about the minis! Once she realized that she was no longer going to be able to act up over the miniature horses she decided she was tired of running around in circles and calmed down.

I then took her and she loaded right up in to the trailer, we casually backed out (mine is a step up, not a ramp) she had no problem with backing down! So we did it about 4 more times and called it a day. I have put in a call to my BFF Teresa and asked to borrow a mini to let Hottie view up close! Maybe then she will see they are just little horses and nothing to get all worked up about! BTW she doesn't like goats either! I have seen Camels walking down the street in Norco. I sure hope they don't break those out during the competition!

Amber works with Hottie!

Today I brought my 8 year old daughter Amber with me. She groomed Hottie and picked her front feet. She also lead her around and backed her up.

Then I tacked her up and rode her in the round pen, she was great. She was very forward today! She didn't want to suck back like last time. She was walking around like she was having a good time, turning, stopping when asked and looking at the cars passing outside the gate. I brought Amber in and showed her how you put a foot in the stirrup and stand up. They both did great. Sydney has sat up on Hottie but Amber isn't ready yet.

I then proceeded to the trailer. We got 2 feet in on our own 5 times and quit on that! Tomorrow we will get all 4 in and be ready to go to ETI Corral 118 show next weekend to show in halter and in hand trail! (I HOPE)

Friday day off. Today trailer loading again!

Yesterday was a day of rest for Hottie and I. Today we are working on the trailer! Tying and loading. We shall see. This is when Hottie turns into a "donkey butt" I have all day so she won't not load today. I really want to haul her to a ETI show next sunday that has in hand trail classes so I really want her to get in and out well because I have to go to the show alone. I will take Dixie for moral support. My paint mare is worth her weight in gold! She will do anything I ask she will never be a champion in the show ring but she is awesome to me! She works cattle, babysits my girls, ponies the babies, she is for sure party of our forever family! She even had a model made of her! Stone horses made a model of her for a model horse show they did in California!

Beautiful sun shiny day!

Thankfully we have overcome some of her fears and are making good progress now. Hottie did great today no one watching on the rail for me today, mom likes to be there just in case I come off and she needs to call 911 or rush me off somewhere!

I am really happy with the progress she is making. I forget sometimes about the little things she is doing that you just take for granted. She saw the clippers today and they got to touch her nose! She was in the barn isle, which isnt like a real barn isle, its more like a L shaped barn with a covered patio type situation out front. There is no turning around in it, she has to walk in and either walk straight out or back out, the roof is low and the floor is concrete. So, when I say she was in the barn isle she is IN and if she gets scared of something its going to be a problem! She doesn't live in the barn with the barn isle either so she isn't used to the noises there. Luckily she has only backed out once on her own accord and it was very carefully.

She long lined really well today and is learning to not overreact when she is scared. I haven't seen the "checked out blind run" in a few weeks, so thats cool. Knock wood she has not overreacted with me on her back but she has done it in the lines and with the saddle. She now looks to me for how she should handle situations. Which is great! She is still a little stubborn but she certainly is making great progress. She is getting her first trim this week. I will post pictures when I have someone to take them for me!

Learning as we go!

So, thats the ugliest picture I have ever seen of myself but admitting it is the first step! I had been wearing my helmet and forgot to put my hat on after I took her saddle off! But, she is so cute I had to post it!

Hottie was great today! I have learned with her you have to show her that what your doing not going to hurt her and that it is her idea! So today with the help of my mom she learned that it was her idea to go forward with me on her! She has turning and backwards down pat! Picture a cutting horse working the flag and that was Hottie and I chasing my mom with a bucket of goodies. We went forward and turned and learned it was ok for my legs to encourage her to go forward. With any other breed of horse I would have by now totally said "get your ass moving" but with her you cant break that trust and she can be really stubborn if you do. She has to be shown that it is ok and she will do it everytime after for you, as long as her trust is not broken! I sure do like this little black mare!

Wind died down!

Lucky for me the wind died down this afternoon! So, I worked on using the whole arena to lunge Hottie. She had in the past at the canter pulled loose when I had the saddle on her. We have been working in the round pen for about 2 weeks, so I decided to test the arena today! BREAKTHROUGH!!!! Perfect at the walk and trot. When I asked for the canter she ran off as usual but didn't get loose and almost looked like she was thinking why did I do that? Then she proceeded to NOT run off and canter!!!!! For those of you following her progress she also has NO problem with the white ropes anymore! So with that I got on her in the large arena and worked on turning and backing (because thats all she would do) just making her feel comfortable out there with me on her and she was awesome! I am so excited! (hence all of the exclamation points)

Wind....

If you haven't experienced the Santa Ana winds all you have to do is visit Chatsworth where all things to an extreme happen! GOTTA HATE THE WIND WHEN YOU HAVE A DEADLINE!

If you know me well, you know riding is my thing, groundwork NOT SO MUCH. I used to think in hand classes were for people who couldn't ride! So, now I can be found perfecting my ground work since we have to compete in hand at the competition! We are trotting and stopping straight, backing through poles, around cones, not quite sidepassing but she is trying very hard! She is a good girl! We got fly sprayed in the barn isle without running backwards or away! Hard to get much riding done in this wind. I think it is supposed to quit Thursday! I sure hope so!

Now I am sick!

I always get sick when the kids do! I feel terrible so didn't get much done today except turning Hottie out and chasing her around for some exercise. Hopefully, I feel better tomorrow and can get more done.

Good times!

Today Hottie had a breakthrough as yet another rope bites the dust! She fought so hard until the rope snapped in half. Brand new rope literally snapped in half, then Hottie hit the ground all on her own doing. I was innocently standing by. I retrieved her tied her back up and she never moved again. Of course thats until tomorrow! After all that drama it was like a calm came over her. By the end of todays work I was bouncing balls off her and the saddle and was riding her bareback! Hey Jennifer notice, NO MOUNTING PHOTOS! You gotta wonder about some people! Is it wrong to run up behind your horse and jump on over the rump? Do they teach that in books? What about laying your horse down and getting on that way?

For those of you in the dark go read the comments from Jennifer and Becky Whites blog from yesterday where they got up in the stirrups on both sides of Gidget (the one that couldn't be touched without trying to kill you last week) and someone had the nerve to say they were doing it incorrectly! As you can see it hit a nerve! Where is the duct tape when you need it? Again I say AWESOME JOB GIRLS!

Finally decided we should tie.

I decided we should brave being tied up today. I knew she would have a problem as she doesnt really like restriction. First I tried the fancy Blocker Tie ring, marketing is such a marvel. I have no use for a ring that teaches your horse to get away if they back far enough. So once she learned that if she backed up enough she was free next came hard tying and full blown sitting down mouth gapped, striking in the air, etc. Three leadropes went to heaven today and with no fancy gadgets, Hottie ties for fly spray, showsheen and being tacked up. Someone on Ebay will get themselves a fancy gadget cheap because tying is tying and has been for hundreds of years. So like Jennifer White says "pull up your big girl panties" and teach your horse to tie!

Which way is home?

Hottie is still mending from her dentistry. I decided to take her out for a nice walk off of the property, outside on the Yuppie Trails of Chatsworth! For those of you from rural settings, Yuppie Trails are bridle paths put in where horse property used to be and non horse keeping property has come in and taken over. They put Yuppie Trails in to get the non horse keeping zoning passed through the City. The bridle paths act as a way to still gain access to the trails through the streets. It is not pleasant because it brings non horse people into a community with strong horse culture and then it threatens the life span of horse keeping in the community. It also threatens the safety of the horses and riders. Non horse people have no clue of the flight response in a horse, not only wild horses but domestic horses alike. They think you should not have your horse in the street where there are no bridle paths. Little do they know that horses were in Chatsworth long before they moved into their new yuppie homes and it is they who should respect the right of the horse to be in CHATSWORTH. Sore spot you think?

Done ranting, back to Hottie! She was very good about most things, today was trash day and the trash trucks didn't bother her. School was in session so there were big yellow buses going by! Bikes are a little scary. People jogging are not a problem. Cars zooming by were not scary although they do make mom MAD.

The only problem we had was directional. She would not go East. She only wanted to go North or South. The only way to get home was EAST! It is obvious to me she has no sense of where home is as a matter of fact when we got back to the gate to the yard she was so determined to show me that it was the wrong direction she backed into the street! A nice man in an oldsmobile stopped to tell me she has a mind of her own. I said not really she is a Wild Mustang and has only been out of the wild for 30 days, so I think she is doing pretty well. He looked at me like I spoke no english. Like what is a wild horse? Can you say "LETS EDUCATE THE PUBLIC" There are still wild animals in the United States and they are not all in Zoos! I think I will write my local paper to see if they can slow down on Chatsworth Street when they see a small black mare in the street! I woke up on the wrong side of the bed today I think!

Bye bye big bad wolf teeth!

Today Hottie was amazing! She was great for Dr. Sullivan. She had her sharp points rasped off and her wolf teeth removed. He was impressed by her at just 31 days into her training!

We are all ready for the bit.

Very tired after her dental work!

Reschedule!

We had to reschedule the Doctors appt for Hottie. Dr. Sullivan had an emergency which was good for me because Sydney has come down with a cold or something like that. Fever, coughing, stuffy nose. It sucks! She is such a good girl, its ok for her to be sick every once in a while! Mommy's baby!

Hottie Day 27

Today was a very laid back day. I took Hottie out and groomed her in the barn isle. She had never been in that confined of a space and with me moving all around her. She stood great I didn't tie her just looped her rope and she never moved. I picked all 4 feet with no trouble.

Tomorrow is a big day for Hottie! She gets to see Dr. Kent Sullivan from West Coast Equine, of Somis, CA. She has a stinky mouth so I am having him check her teeth and also she has a sore leg from getting stuck in the arena fence when she rolled. So, we will have that looked at too! The leg has set me back a few days but thats ok, we will be fine im sure!

Hottie day 26

Today was Hotties first day off the property! She was awesome! Cars didn't bother her, people and gardeners didn't bother her and the only thing that did bother her were dogs barking and trying to kill her through the fence. The good thing is it really didn't bother her much at all!!!!!

Wooo hoo I feel like I have made a huge breakthrough. My trails are NOT like venturing out into the woods as you can see. I have to go out onto a semi major street that is 2 lanes and no bridle path for a little bit. People think that a horse will be fine with them coming by 6 inches away at 40 miles per hour. Then we ride next to the "L.A. River" which is not a river at all. It is a huge flood channel with a 30ft drop as you can see and the barking dogs are on the other side! Im pretty sure she never encountered this in the wild! Things can be quite scary. I am so proud of HOTTIE!

Dixie was awesome also! Thanks to mom and Buster for moral support and the always handy camera phone!

Buster boy, mom's rope horse. He is worried because I am trying to get Hottie into the trailer and thinks that we are taking his mares away. She didn't get in. Oh well next time! She was awesome none the less.

www.equineactionphotos.com - Jim and Lani Muche

I met the nicest couple today. Jim and Lani Muche. They came to photograph Hottie and I.



I really enjoyed the time we spent today learning about them and them about us. Not to mention the pictures are amazing! Lani has a great eye obviously by the photos attached. She took 228 photos and said only 3 are throw aways.



WOW!





I can't wait to see some more! I hope you enjoy her work as much as I do!

Hottie Day 24

These are pretty much the only kind of pictures you can get with a camera phone by yourself!



A truck drove by the round pen today which was nice so I asked him to honk for me! NO reaction!






A view from where I sit!

Pretty good day.

Team Hottie

This is my husband Robbie he is awesome, He is cleaning the stall for me! He also fed her carrots. Im pretty sure Hottie got her fair share of carrots this weekend thanks to my dad, Teresa, and Robbie!

Team Hottie!!

Get your Team Hottie wear at www.cafepress.com/reedperformance

Jay VanPelt Photography Sheeza Hottie pictures

This is the one going to Bridle and Bit magazine.

Sydney is at almost every session that I work Hottie! This is a great picture, LOVE IT!

Sweet eye!














Pearly whites!

Grandma watching Syd! Grandma has her Hottie gear on!

Hottie day 20

Today was a great day. We had company my friend and fellow trainer Karen Van Pelt came over with her husband Jay who is a great photographer! Lucky for me because we needed photos to send to another magazine!

I will post some of Jay's work as soon as he gets them to me!

I had to go out of town for 3 days so I will not be posting until monday afternoon. I have my awesome friend Teresa going over to pet Hottie and feed her carrots so she doesn't feel abandoned. While I was waiting for Jay and Karen I sat down on my favorite mounting block and Hottie decided she should lay down and roll with me! That was pretty cool, I guess I am not a predator!

Rain Rain GO AWAY! Day 19

Not much that could be done today. I used to like the rain but now that I have a deadline, I need all of the good weather I can get! I came to clean the stall and try to direct the rain out so she doesn't have standing water. She was happy to see me! She followed me around sniffing my hair just being a busy bee. I decided to take her out and groom her since she seemed like she wanted to do something besides stand there. So she got her feet picked out for the first time! I had just been lifting the feet for a couple of days. She has gotten past defending her legs from harm which means we are breaking through some of her wild instinct. She still has the flight instinct sometimes but at least we have trust with the legs now. She also got all of her beautiful hair combed out and a good curry because she is shedding out! She is going to be so sleek and black when she is done.

Hottie day 18

Today we worked mostly on voice commands. She is doing good. There was a lot of commotion at the barn today. Shoers and hay delivery! She had never heard the grinder and banging of the shoes. She was very interested in the truck until it started to make noise! I was impressed that she could concentrate on me and working with all of activity going on!

Sheeza Hottie Day 17

THATS MY HOTTIE GIRL! We picked up all 4 feet today! NO PROBLEM! We also got bit up for the first time today. Not tight at all but still enough to feel the restraint and she did awesome!


www.cafepress.com/reedperformance

GET YOUR HOTTIE GEAR TO SHOW YOUR SUPPORT OF THIS GREAT HORSE IN NORCO! SHE IS A CONTENDER FOR SURE!

Hottie day 16

Dixie and Hottie! I brought Dixie to pony Hottie she wasn't quite sure she wanted to go with Dixie but she did pretty well for it being her first time!
Dixie is great at teaching horses confidence. She also showed Hottie it is ok to get a bath! LEGS AND ALL! So Hottie had a great bath today!






















Not too sure she wants Hottie tagging along!