Lunging Zum helps me to see where he is mentally and emotionally. I know Zum refuses a saddle and cinching now. It might take a long time for Zum to get over his fear of the saddle after his accident with the new ranch saddle. But I have to keep trying to do something with him.
I am able to get Zum to gallop on a lunge line and ask him to stop. He stops. This is the first step in teaching Zum to stand still when I ask him.
My neighbor opened Zum’s chakras today. It is amazing to watch her do this. Zum has been very stiff and tense since the ranch saddle accident. But after his chakras opened, he dropped his head and relaxed. She wants me to talk to Zum as if he is my best friend. She wants me to rub my bare hands over his body daily as well as rub up against his body with my body every time I walk by him. This way, Zum is familiar with me and my touch. In time, he will accept whatever my hands put on his back….like a saddle.
I taught Zum to roll a blue ball with his nose!
While Zum takes time to recover from the new ranch saddle trauma, I am playing with him. He loves to stand on a wooden plank.
Buddy used a ranch saddle on Zum and I loved the way it felt when I rode Zum. So I got a ranch saddle online. The new saddle arrived after Zum was already home from training with Buddy so I never got to ask Buddy how to put it on. I don’t know anything about ranch saddles. I put it on incorrectly and it slid down below Zum’s belly. Zum bucked and bucked, knocking himself into the corral as he tried to free himself from the saddle. Zum’s back foot got stuck in a stirrup. My neighbor heard my yelling ‘Whoa!’ over and over and came running to see the nightmare. Zum flipped on his side and she got the saddle disconnected from his belly. Zum has raw sections of his belly with scrapes and cuts on his back legs but he is walking so I am very grateful. The new saddle is ripped to pieces. Zum is traumatized. So am I. So I am back to basics, playing with him and putting on his Arabic blanket for comfort.
Zum loves getting out on the trail. He is a born trail horse!
Horses are not concerned with what time it is. So when I am retraining Zum to put the saddle on, I have to accept however long it takes. With horses, it is better not to be in a hurry. It is best to have all the time in the world!
Even when I am training Zum, I always want to play with him too.
I am on my way to building a lifetime relationship with Zum. And our bond is full of kisses.
