[shepherd406]

We are too much alike!! ALL my friends tell me that we are.

She's stubborn, hardheaded, & opinionated.

Oh wait, that's me. HAHA!

I guess I'm the typical mare too.

[noreins]

That just means yall will be friend for life

[EVOO]

In addition to the bonding exercises, just sit in the paddock. Take a book, a magazine, some music, a project and just SIT. Ignore her. If she investigates greet her kindly, but then go back to what you're doing. My mare is very aloof, but even she seemed more at ease when I made it a point to just be.

[shepherd406]

I'm hoping so

I've been around horses for awhile, but she's my first horse that is actually MINE.

[4horsem0m]

I've been studying Parelli's level 2 and the thing that stuck out that I needed to do was have undemanding time with my horse. It was amazing. I only had about 20 minutes and wasn't expecting anything from him at all, but I took him out into the arena, let him lose and then went and sat down on a tipped over barrel. I figured he would go stand as far away as possible and ignore me. He went over to his rolling spot and had a good couple of rolls, then went over to a pile of poop and sniffed it, then he came over to me and started nuzzling me. The rule is that you don't touch them until they touch you. Pretty soon he rested his forhead on mine, then hung his head between my knees and just stood there and let me pet him. Big deep sigh, perfectly relaxed (too relaxed, he dropped, and that is something he has NEVER done around me). A girl came through the arena gate to cut across, he left me and met her at the gate, and stayed between her and I until she left the other side gate, then he came back. This horse usually HATES being brushed or petted on the face, but he started it.

I feel like after 5 years I am just starting to know him. I had gone through level 1 about 3 years ago and then just stopped. Boy is there a lot to learn. Lately, I've been feeling like a sponge and I want to learn more about him and work with him as a partner.

[shepherd406]

That's what I was thinking of doing in the roundpen. Her pasture is ginormous & she'd probably just hang out with Dillian. ( who absolutely adores me btw)

I figured I'd just hang out with her in the roundpen for a bit, since there are no distractions in there.

(our roundpen would blow your mind. Haha Picture about a 10 foot tall wall of cut up tires.....& I'd say it has a diameter of about 30 feet)

[noreins]

I just started with parelli! I like it and I really love your story! I sit with my horses all the time. My filly loves to help me shop my Jeffers catalog! And she is great at wiping away tears too. She is my soul mate I swear it. And my gelding is my best friend. Gosh horses are so amazing!

[EVOO]

Taking her to the round pen kind of negates the point of doing it, which is for you to become a fixture in her life that doesn't necessarily interrupt her usual activities when it shows up. That is, every time you're around she's not working, she's not pulled out of her pasture, she's not being brushed, etc. She may not even look at you twice, but she'll know you're there and that's what makes the difference.

[4horsem0m]

Originally Posted by noreins

I just started with parelli! I like it and I really love your story! I sit with my horses all the time. My filly loves to help me shop my Jeffers catalog! And she is great at wiping away tears too. She is my soul mate I swear it. And my gelding is my best friend. Gosh horses are so amazing!

In this past week I feel like I have grown so much and learned so much about my horse. I have learned to read him and found that what I thought before was naughty and disrespectful is actually unconfidence. If I would have only known before! Good thing they forgive us.

[goldiesmom]

I was considering selling my mare due to us not clicking in the begining, but once I started to make time of just the two of us and not having anything in mind to do but hang out, that is where we really got to know one another and things changed, I too think we have very similar personalities...I think stubborn is just a female thing in general tho so maybe that doesn't count!

I was always interested in Parelli, but I was always scared it was a big hoax of some kind..you know a bunch of hokey pokey just to get you to spend your money I would love to go to a clinic and have them change my mind but I heard that you need to buy all of their stuff before they will teach you...is that true?