BEHS 534 – Blessings

Blessings appears to have been handled some before being seized, although not much. Her foster home worked with her, and Blessings learned to be haltered and tolerates brushing and petting. Her foster home started ground work with her, and she learned to move in the direction requested, back up, walk over a bridge and poles on the ground, and tolerate a rope on different parts of her body. In her stall she is no problem to halter and her foster home is teaching her to be haltered in an open space. She is a smart mare and wishes to please.

Report from the trainer Blessings spent time with in the summer of 2012:
Using Natural Horsemanship techniques, JD worked with Blessings to stop her running off, pulling away, and being so fearful. He established a trusting relationship with Blessings in which he was able to reinforce her groundwork, establishing direction and speed. JD used driving reins to help all of her transitions, and developed her stop and backup.

The second month of training began with riding Blessings, but she would only move out to the left. When attempting to move her to the right, she showed definite signs of pain related to her teeth. After a visit to the vet and a float, and after she realized that there was no pain on that side, she began moving into her gaits in both directions. Her transitions became smooth and uneventful. JD worked Blessings with a hackamore because of bone spurs from past abuse in her mouth. Blessings began to be more comfortable with a rider and with more time and training, she will be able to move out to the trail.

JD worked with Blessings on trailer loading calmly and quietly. She loads on and off the trailer without problems. As long as her handler takes time and has patience with Blessings, she does well. Blessings would be a good horse with more training and an experienced rider, because she will test her rider’s confidence and skill. Her rider will need to know a one rein stop for safety until Blessings is comfortable outside the round pen.

Update September 2012: Blessings' has been working with her trainer for the 2012 Bluebonnet Rescue Horse Training Challenge on October 20, 2012 at the Bluebonnet Horse Expo in Austin, Texas. She is making great strides, but she is not going to be a beginner or novice horse. They're riding her in a halter or bitless bridle as she has bone spurs inside her mouth that might make riding in a bit uncomfortable. She does well in an arena: walking, trotting, cantering and navigating trail obstacles. Sher has been ridden on trail rides and does pretty well. Her one bad habit is that sometimes she decides she does not want to go the direction her rider wants to go. If her rider insists, she will buck. She seems to do this less often when ridden in an arena or on trail rides with other horses.

For the right person, Blessings could be a nice trail or arena horse. She's going to need a more experienced rider who is willing to help her work through her issues.