Winter Blahs

Here we are coming on Christmas already, though I'm having a hard time getting into the spirit under present circumstances. I can say for our area the weather has been forgiving. We've managed to escape the extreme snow falls that the east coast is getting this last week. Family in Va are really getting hit. November here in the barely what you could call the midwest--no one knows how to classify Ohio,was mild and sunny for a change. The bad part of this is that my horses have been mostly confined to their stalls unless I turn them out personally since the turnout routine is not always so routine. When the sun is shining and the temps mild--what I consider horse heaven--they have had to miss out on a lot of leisurly grazing and sun bathing through the day. They have large stalls, and lots of barn activity to keep things interesting but it's not the same. If we were having blizzards or piles of snow or ice rain like we normally do, they prefer to be snugged up in their stalls. Maybe they don't think about missing the nice days like I do. They don't really know what there missing unless I tell them I suppose.

I've made half-hearted attempts to find property to lease, lease to own, and there is a place in Texas that is tempting. East Texas though, which would mean we can't escape the humidity, and then there's the fact that I'm a chicken at starting out as a stranger in a strange land. I used to have a pioneer spirit and a need for wonderlust, but in my oncomming "golden years" this is less so.

Oh well, dream on. What I'd really like short term is a lot more opportunity to ride my horses.

Marley & Me--the film version

Great example of way bad screenwriting. A real disappointment except at the end where I cried my eyes out because it reminded me of the day I had to put my dog (yes, a Lab, but a well behaved one) down--see Goodbye from the 2006 archives in this blog--
So...what exactly was this film about? Me and my dog, me and my wife, me and my job, Me and my wife, my kids--oops here comes another one!-- and my job, oh yeah, by the way, heres a shot of my dog in the background chewing up the couch cushions again...

I didn't think the book was all that wonderful either, but at least there was some deeper character development there, causing me to become somewhat emotionally invested in Marley--Grogan & family? Not so much.

Impressions on Nat Geo's Dog Whisperer

First I wanna say I love watching Cesar, even though my dog has passed on. It was my familiarity with natural horsemanship that got me hooked on Cesar in the first place, the principles being so similar. Before ever hearing about Cesar, I used to practice a sort of driving game using zone 3 with my dog or bringing my energy up or down to get my dog to respond appropriately. It worked! I haven't tried driving the cat though.

Second, It was just awesome, and the commentary was great explaining Pat's techiques to the general audience. I was kind of worried about people tuning in and thinking, "whatsup with that guy, whacking that poor little pony with the orange stick like that?" Anybody else? And what about that Cupcake? wasn't she just too adorable?

And last, I've gotten choked up watching the Dog Whisperer before, but when Pat mentioned Caton I totally lost it. You could see Pat get genuinely emotional describing his son, given the context of the environment, and that he and Cesar would be able to help the center and the animals involved was I'm sure, very meaningful to him. I hope everyone that wants to gets a chance to see this--maybe Nat'l Geo could run it on their site or Cesar's site to promote "The Dog Whisperer" in general--or maybe as a lead in to a new show: The Cat Whisperer.

Cesar Milan and Pat Parelli

Pat and Cesar work in tandem at a theraputic riding center to teach handlers how to deal with a horse and two dogs with aggression issues. Airs tonight at 9pm eastern time on the National Geographic Channel. Watch it!

Waiting for spring

Another Great, Ray Hunt, Passes Away..

I just got the news from Daily Parelli that Ray Hunt passed away on March 12, 2009. I just went to the site and have not seen an update, but about a week ago I was at his site as well as the Tom Dorrance site (for the moment, the site is not working) catching up on these seminal horsemen who had been practicing their own special style of horsemanship through "feel." I believe the Dorrance brothers refered to their method as "It" before the Parelli's coined the term "Natural Horsemanship."

It seemed serendipitous according to Parelli, from an interview in audio format sent to Savvy Club members, and from his book "Raise Your Hand If you Love Horses" that he was at the right place at the right time in Califiornia when he crossed paths with Troy Henry, Tom Dorrance, and Ray Hunt, masters all, who eventually influenced and fostered Parelli's own endeavors. These men opened the door to the resurgence of the natural horsemanship phenom, so that new masters such as Parelli and his generation, each with their individual mark, could bring about change for the better for horses and their owners, creating themselves a new generation of "Natural's"

Here's but a few of Ray's common sense remarks on training:

"The human is so busy working on the horse, that he doesn't allow the horse to learn. They need to quit working on the horse and start working on themselves."

"The horse usually gets the job done in spite of us, not because of us."

Ray Hunt, Bless you for your contribution in making life better for our equine friends.

Checking In

February's almost over, now to get through March. Looking forward to some milder weather. It has been the coldest winter in 25 years. Hard to believe.

Horses are now south of the city. The property has some nice trails, but I've been too busy with Mom and the cancer thing, and the bad weather--oh yeah, road construction. It used to take me 15-20 minutes and now takes me 45. Huh, just like the old days driving up north.