Mocha - Flexing after Mount Up

Sweetened Mocha
Mocha has settled in now at my place and is enjoying her new horse friends.

Summertime! Summertime! Gotta love Summertime!

Back to training.....

Goal for Mocha...
Is to turn Mocha into a nice riding horse so she needs to have a solid foundation. I want to make sure she enjoys her riding career. And her rider will enjoy her as well.

Whoa Before You Go
One of the 1st things I teach a horse is to Flex to A Stop. Mocha needs to know how to stop at all times when a rider asks.

So I always spend a few minutes flexing both sides after I step aboard a horse. It teaches the horse to wait after being mounted so they don't rush off and it works on softening their face.

You can almost not do enough flexing... You can see from the photos that I am flexing from both sides. The photo of me flexing Mocha to the left shows my left hand sliding down the rein just before I will take hold of the rein, pull back and rest it on my leg or saddle horn (so as not to move).

This 'sliding down the rein' becomes a preparatory cue to the horse. It's a nicer or kinder way of asking.

That's all I have for today. It's been quite a busy time here at the new facility. Many customers coming and going. And I have plans underway for building an addition to my barn.

Enjoy the summer!
I'll write more as Mocha advances.

Questions and comments are always welcome.
Reinersue
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