3yr old filly working a hinged gate twice 6 Sept 2023

Cinnamon, the 3yr old Gypsy-Shire, was curried and saddled while on Stand-Stay - then immediately mounted up and worked a gate to get into the front pasture. Yes I believe the horse should calmly understand its job so that it can simply be saddled and go do that job cold - no warm up - no lunging - saddle up and go to work. So we did exactly that - we walked over to the gate into our small lot we use as an arena and I put Cinnamon on Stand-Stay by that gate - dismounted from the off side and rigged up a way to use a nearby post to hold my phone to take a video. You see me mounting from the off side (the "wrong" side) because that is the safest way to mount when the horse is pretty close to the gate. We then work the gate twice - first by the push away walk through method - second by the push away back through method. Yes on a 3yr old filly with just 3 months of starting level training. This is not a finished horse - this is simply a well started youngster - a 3yr old filly. She knows how to neck rein. She knows the basic lateral movements - pass around the forehand (hip yield) - pass around the haunches (shoulder yield aka pivot) - and side pass. When asked to canter she knows how to take the requested lead even if there is no visual cue. She has done a lot of wading level water crossings, stepped over many logs of varied sizes, gone up and done moderate to quite steep hills. She loads into a horse trailer by the send in method. She unloads from the trailer by the tail tug back out method. She did one dally and drag of a small tree limb downed by a storm - just a real quick intro by pulling it beside her while leading her - then get on and do it - and she drug it the best part of a quarter mile to the brush pile in the woods - just like it was perfectly normal though it was her first time ever. In addition to foundational training in the arena Cinnamon has logged 89.6 road miles including going to the grocery store and she has also logged 151.4 trail miles here on Lenawee County farmland plus at Waterloo Recreation Area and also at Oak Openings Metropark. That is a total of 241.1 miles logged on roads and trails in addition to foundational training done in the arena. Yes I VERY much believe it takes REAL miles going somewhere to make a good horse and this young filly though not a finished horse has a VERY good start. Her owner has wisely taken me up on the offer to come over weekly to work on horsemanship and when this filly goes home tomorrow I am pretty certain her owner will be happy with her.

Remember to intentionally, on purpose, learn of God each day by prayerfully reading, studying, and pondering upon God's word each day. Talk to God in prayer as your Heavenly Father who would like for you to be His friend. Find out what He would like you to do for Him as His friend and go and do it for Him as His friend. Yes very intentionally, very much on purpose, become the friend of God. And have a blessed day!!

Jack Griffes
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