Road Trip with Pictures Post Coming Soon!!!

Travis and Tony were hired to deliver Daffinah and her mother, Wisteria, to Eureka, CA. TnT drug me along to take pictures! LOL!!! That's my excuse anyway! The trip will take a couple of days.

I am in the process of writing the post that will be filled with pictures of this trip to Northern California. This post will be quite lengthy if I don't break it up into several different posts! Also, this will be the last road trip with my sons for a long, long time...

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MnC's Disclaimer: At no time is excessive force, cruelty or brutality used when training the horses pictured in this blog. Reinforcing pats and firm gentleness, along with calmness from the trainers, encourage the horses to do as they are asked.

Daffinah's Grand Canyon...Part Two...

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This is a continuation of Daffinah's Grand Canyon ...Part One. At first, she still considers the wet strip of land a serious threat! As you can see she reared a couple of times, trying not to touch the rivulet. Finally, as Tony talked to her quietly...she stepped across her Grand Canyon!!! Since the time span from the first picture in Part One and the last picture here in Part Two is only about 15 minutes at the most, Daffinah needs to cross her Grand Canyon one more time...carrying Tony...





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MnC's Disclaimer: At no time is excessive force, cruelty or brutality used when training the horses pictured in this blog. Reinforcing pats and firm gentleness, along with calmness from the trainers, encourage the horses to do as they are asked.

Daffinah's Grand Canyon...Part One...

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Daffinah's Grand Canyon...Part One...
Tony coaxing Daffinah to walk over the rivulet of water.
There are a total of 51 pictures spread throughout four picture books. Tony started out just riding Daffinah around the stables until he came across this "Grand Canyon" that Daffinah did not want to cross! He worked with her from the saddle for a little bit, but could see that she needed coaxing from the ground first without having to maneuver with Tony on her back.

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MnC's Disclaimer: At no time is excessive force, cruelty or brutality used when training the horses pictured in this blog. Reinforcing pats and gentleness, along with calmness from the trainers, encourage the horses to do as they are asked.

List of Daffinah's Training Posts...

This post was created for easy access to all of Daffinah's training posts. This portrait of Daffinah will be added in the left hand column with a link to this post and I will keep this post updated as new articles are posted. (Isn't she beautiful!)

1. Picking Up Daffinah...
2. Daffinah's Evaluation...
3. Update...
4. Daffinah's 1st Cinched Saddle...
5. Daffinah's Slipped Saddle...
6. Driving Daffinah...
7. Daffinah's 1st Bath...
8. List of Daffinah's Training Posts...(you are here!)
   

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Daffinah's 1st Bath...

On the same day that the saddle slipped under Daffinah's belly, she was given her first bath! She was a little skittish when Tony first turned on the water, but calmed down to the point of looking a little bored with the whole process. The horses on her row were giving her moral support...Rocket (the sorrel) from behind, while Faith (the paint) and Wyatt (the draft cross) cheered on from behind the trees!

At first Daffinah spun around on the end of the lead rope, but after a few minutes she settled down to stand right next to Tony as he proceeded to spray her legs, back, tail and neck. She decided that it was kinda nice having Tony hold the water so that she could get a drink and didn't fuss at all when he starting running the water over her face. Tony decided to end the bath before putting the water over her ears so that he could put Daffinah back in her pen on a good note!

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Driving Daffinah...

After a family barbeque on Mother's Day, TnT and I headed over to the stables to work Daffinah and attend a FFHA general meeting. I took my usual place to take pictures as Travis readied Daffinah for driving. He took a piece of twine and tied the stirrups together so that when he ran the driving reins through them from the bridle, they would not flop around.

Daffinah fussed a little about having the reins laying against the back of her legs, but other than that she did really good! She gives well to pressure and this along with the fact that she is eager to learn make her training sessions a delight!

Travis worked her in both directions and called it a good session after she did a couple of rounds without tossing her head. Driving a horse is a great way to teach them reining and giving to pressure. When Travis was putting Daffinah up, Michelle showed up and we got to talk with her for a few minutes before the meeting started. Michelle used to have a horse stabled here and it is her families' ranch where TnT have been working cattle.

All in all this was a wonderful Mother's Day!!!


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Daffinah's Slipped Saddle...

I took this set of pictures at the end of Daffinah's 1st Cinched Saddle session. She handled the fact that the saddle had slipped to the underside of her belly! And even though the time lapsed was maybe a couple of minutes...both Daffinah and Tony had worked up quite a sweat!!

To always end a a good note...Tony worked her a little after tightening the cinch. She is doing so good!!!

Photographer's Observation: Daffinah is in training 24/7 even if she knows it or not. Little lessons are being implemented all the time...such as placing her hay in a galvanized bucket that makes loud noises...a rope is tossed at her...water is sprayed around her to settle the dust...the pen is cleaned with her still in the pen...her ears are played with...and so on!!! (Just like when the guys were little...I remember leaving the television on while they took their naps and made noises while they slept so that I didn't have to pussy foot around during nap time!!!) This could have backfired on me I know, but when they need to rest they don't need complete silence and will get up at a moments notice.


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Daffinah's 1st Cinched Saddle...

I am not getting pictures of every single day that Daffinah is in training, however I do try to get pictures when TnT are working on something new. In these pictures, Daffinah, is going to experience a cinched saddle for the first time! (She has had a saddle on her back one time but it was not cinched.)

Before Tony placed the saddle pad and then the saddle on her back he worked with her feet a little, asked to her back up, and then when he headed to the fence to get the saddle, she followed right behind him. Tony stopped to rest, giving Daffinah some well deserved pats and rubs. When he pulled his rope off the saddle...Daffinah decided that she didn't want anything to do with the rope. So, the saddle sat on the fence for a little longer while Tony worked with her until she didn't mind being roped. Through all of her training it does not take long for her to accept the next step! She is such a sweetheart and is constantly licking her lips in submission!!

You will notice that there were driving reins laying in the middle of the round pen. The training session did not lend itself to driving Daffinah this time...The last three pictures where a different day when the round pen was occupied and Daffinah was worked on the end of a lunge line. I was cleaning her pen and listened to her training more than watched. At first I could her her race really fast, slow to a trot and then stop, race fast again, slow to a trot and stop again! By the time I had her pen cleaned she was trotting at an even pace and would stop only when Tony gave her the signal!

The next post will show how she handled the saddle slipping!!!



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Update...

I have a lot of pictures of TnT working with the horses. I will share those this next week. Daffinah is really a sweetheart. Every day she tries harder to please. Tony said yesterday that "she has a lot of want to!!!" He worked with her in the round pen, cinching up the saddle again and adding some of his weight. No bucking!!! She even got her first bath since she came to the stables. I have pictures of that too!

Travis rode Lucky out and around by the containers that have been placed in the field. He had no problem and walked through them very calmly. Sorry no pictures there, but I do have some that Travis and Tony took when they went on a ride down the wash.

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Daffina's Evaluation...

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TnT took Daffinah to the round pen to evaluate where she was in the training process. It was very evident that her first 4 1/2 years were not wasted. She is very friendly, trusting, and is very eager to learn! She tends to not stop running when she doesn't have a halter and long lead rope attached, but that will change.

Tony worked her in the round pen as Travis looked on from the side rails. She did not mind me taking pictures from different places along the rails. She was alert and kept her attention on Tony and tried very hard to do everything that he asked of her!

As you can see in the series of photos where the rope is wrapped around behind Daffinah, she showed that she gives well to pressure, turning as she is directed through the rope. She wasn't too happy with the rope when it was tossed around her head at first, but again in no time at all she acted like the rope wasn't there. Daffinah is a very sweet mare!

TnT will work her each day to build up her stamina for training. The first day she got very sweaty, but we can blame most of that to new surroundings, new people around her, and her eagerness or nervousness as she tries to please.

My favorite picture is of the closeup of Daffinah with Tony showing up right above her ears!!!

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Picking up Daffinah...

Cool Slideshows

Last week TnT started training a beautiful 4 1/2 year old Arabian mare. Her name is Daffinah which translates into "Hidden Treasure"! Daffinah is dappled grey with highlights of mahogany.

As TnT attempted to load her into their horse trailer, it was evident that her first 4 1/2 years were not wasted. She hesitated a little and pulled back a little. As Tony talked and coaxed her to step up into the trailer, Travis quietly stepped beside her, lifting her left leg into the trailer. They repeated this process a couple of times before Daffinah stood with both front feet firmly planted in the trailer.

Daffinah accomplished this step quickly and after deciding that she would trust the new smells and the strange new horse that was already standing at the front of the trailer, (TnT took Coal for moral support for Daffinah) she stepped on in to the trailer as Travis quietly closed the door behind her. In one fluid movement he opened the sliding door so that Tony could step out, leaving Daffinah securely tied to the side.

Daffinah neighed quite a bit as she was trailered away from her home...she neighed off and on as we traveled about a mile to a nearby convenient store. So far it looked like Daffinah would travel very well on the trip to our stables. No outbursts, no rocking, she was doing GREAT!!!

When we reach the stables, we pulled around by our horses so that Daffinah could meet our herd. I love the picture of her meeting Oakley and Belle! The last picture shows her in her stable which is a stones throw away from the round pen. Her next door neighbor is "Rocket" and they seem to hit it off right away!!

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