Jumping Chute

Every once in a while I like to set up the jumping chute in the arena and let the horses play in it a little.  Highboy came with me to the arena and eagerly watched me get it situated, then happily romped through with some celebratory bucking after the last jump.  I love it that he enjoys jumping so much that he would start even before I've unclipped his lead rope, and he comes right back to me for his cookie and to do it again.

I let Highboy do the chute first because jumping is his favorite thing, with or without a rider.  However, I actually set it up for two horses who are new to jumping, Silver and Ferriana.  To introduce the chute to Silver I first led him through, both of us walking over ground poles and pausing for a cookie after going over each group of poles.  When Silver was confidently marching along I raised the last jump to a cross rail and led him through again.  By then he had the idea, so I raised all the jumps and sent him through without me.  He was really quiet and calm, and just went down the line like it was no big deal.

Lastly I took Ferriana out.  I groomed her at the horse trailer and we discussed cleaning her hind hooves again.  She's getting better each time I address it, but I always have to be cautious of the line between nerves and boredom. Once she was all cleaned up I put jumping boots on her for the first time.  I put her right front boot on, using one that is super fast and easy to put on and take off, just in case she decided to argue about it.  She was ok with me putting it on, but lifted her hoof in the air and shook it a few times to see if this strange thing wrapped around her leg would come off.  I next put on the left front boot and she repeated the high stepping. 

To give her a minute to contemplate this new addition to her wardrobe I untied her and we went for a short walk around the front of the barn.  Ferriana did her best Tennesee Walking horse impression with giant steps, but wasn't unduly concerned about them once she realized she could graze a little while wearing them.  After she had decided they weren't a problem I tied her up again and put on the back boots.  She was ok for getting these on, and then I immediately took her down to the arena.

Ferriana had watched Highboy and Silver do the jumping chute from her paddock earlier in the day, so she wasn't entirely unfamiliar with what was going on.  I introduced the chute to her using the same method I used with Silver, and she very calmly figured out what the game was right away.  By her third time through on her own I had raised the jumps almost to the height Highboy had done, and she easily went right down the line clearing them comfortably. She just needs another session or two ground driving so I can make sure I have brakes and steering, and then she'll be ready to start riding and soon jumping under saddle. 

It's great that she likes the jumping at liberty and is so precise about her technique.  It will make jumping under saddle very easy to introduce, since she will have already learned how to see a takeoff distance herself. Since she's eight and done growing we can progress as swiftly as she is able to learn the job, which I'm expecting to be pretty fast.  I've taught other horses with this level of intelligence how to jump and the key is changing the exercises often enough, and increasing the difficulty level enough that they stayed interested.  This is going to be a blast.  It's also nice that she associates me with going out and doing fun things, and she comes right back to me to see what fun thing we'll do next.