What's in a Name?

Frosty (as he was called back then) and I spent the next couple of weeks hand walking, grazing, grooming, and experimenting with treats. Apples, carrots, peppermints, and sugar cubes were a no go. I  found some peppermint flavored treats he gobbled up eagerly so we finally had a winner!

Around the third week, I decided to go for our first ride. He was a bit nervous initially but settled right in - we had a nice little ride! The next day I decided to start work in the round pen on the lunge line. JK agreed to work with us both since Frosty had never been lunged before. The poor guy thought she was trying to kill him for the first five minutes or so, but he eventually figured out what we wanted him to do. After that initial lesson, I worked with him about five times a week on the lunge. He picked up the commands for walk, trot, and whoa in the first week of training, and by the second week was working very well at the walk and trot. I decided to incorporate some canter work into our routine in the third week, and Mr. Frosty Man once again thought I was trying to kill him. Eventually he managed a complete canter circle tracking left. I was ecstatic and figured we ought to quit while we were ahead.

We practiced the canter tracking left for the next couple of sessions, and then I asked him to canter tracking right. I figured he would be a bit stiff in this direction since racehorses are typically worked tracking left, but I definitely was not prepared for what happened next. Frosty spun around, reared, and stopped dead in his tracks, shaking. After a few more lessons with JK, the rearing and honest-to-goodness fear was put to rest, but we still continue to struggle with that direction. We'll keep working on that.

Next came more consistent work under saddle. I had ridden Frosty a few times before, and our last ride was a bit more eventful than the previous rides. All of a sudden if I asked him to trot, he would pin his ears in distaste and move forward with reluctance. If I insisted he move forward, he would kick out, and he would even throw in a mini-rear from time to time. TOTES WHATEVEN!?!?! Confused and unsure if I had an ill-fitting saddle/bridle problem, a physical problem, or a nasty attitude problem, I turned, once again to JK for help. After our lesson, I decided to put Frosty into a month of training with JK.

At this point, our month is almost up, and I have definitely seen some improvement. Frosty is moving forward (most of the time) with ears pointed forward, moving away from leg pressure, and stretching into contact. When I ride, he still throws little fits every now and again, but with some encouragement from JK, we are able to ride through them. I'm still planning to have his teeth checked again and an appointment with a saddle fitter is definitely on the horizon, but it's an improvement. I try to remind myself every time we have a hiccup that I've only had Mr. Man for about 3 months, and all of this is new to him.

And that about brings us up to date. Except for one last thing. The name Frosty definitely wasn't doing anything for me, so I decided to change it. Anyone who knows me at all knows my obsession with Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and Henry Mancini's "Moon River," hence new show name "Huckleberry Friend" and new barn name "Finn." How did you decide on a name for your new horse?