Every horse has a sticky point and ShoGun hasn’t been an exception.  Having breakthrough’s is a normal part of the training process.  Where some horses struggle with accepting equipment, ShoGun has struggled with being away from his herd.  Now, let me define that.  ShoGun is absolutely a SUPERSTAR when he is away from home and it is just he and I, or just he and other horses.  But here at home, the arena is just outside the barn door and within view of his pasture and mates.

Mustangs are fascinating.  And having 4 in one pasture, all under the age of 4, all just 6 weeks post holding pen, has had its ups and downs.  But we prefer a natural environment here, and so we listen to them and try to assimilate into their herd as much as we can. 

On the ground, this is going fabulously well.  The horses are easy catch now that they know they can be caught and they all like attention, so we use that as their reward.  The barn is a cool place to rest, so I spend as much time out there ‘grooming’ with them as I can, and they all take turns learning new tricks.

Each one has their space and their private time with me and with others who visit here at the farm, so it is a happy place, and horses like happy places.

Being under saddle, suppling to the left and to the right, walking, trotting, and cantering on command aren’t necessarily ‘happy’ exercises if you are a 3-year old mustang, fresh from the wild and happy with your new girlfriend, Itchy.  Yes, the love story has blossomed into a full blown relationship for ShoGun and Itchy.  They are the epitomy of ‘attached at the hip’.  They graze together, eat together and even crowd into the same stall together if I let them.  They love each others company, and all other horses are dead to them when they are together.

This is why I kept getting dumped and why I reluctantly decided to get my round pen out from around the cow barn and back into use as a horse training tool.

While I have kept ShoGun working outside of any confinement, the time had come for me to help him understand that as a team he needs to listen to my cues and I to respect his unabiding love for Itchy, who calls non-stop when he isn’t within her sight.

This wouldn’t be such an issue if ShoGun were able to continue concentrating while working with me.  He’s an absolute genious when he’s concentrating.  Flawless, in fact.  But one whinny out of Itchy and his head comes up, his body goes stiff, and he’s off to the races to see what in the world is happening to her.

The first 2 times I came off him were not serious.  More my decision than his.  I can tell when a horse is listening and when they’ve just disengaged to the point that any cue may send them into the type of horse distraction that usually gains you a buck.  Both times I stepped off just as he was taking off.  The good news is that he never goes very far.  This is good, because both of these times I was trail riding and it would have been a long walk home on my own legs.

In this way, ShoGun is very normal.  The kind of teen-age horse that wants desperately to please me (his parent) and answer the call of nature (love).  When this kind of ratio enters into the horse + human equation, I’ve had enough experience to know that I will be second to get my wish on that list.

So, enter the round pen.  Set not 100 feet away from where Itchy calls her stall home.  ShoGun works beautifully.  Walk, trot, canter..(still working on the left lead), and he even side passes well.  But this all is forgotten when Itchy calls, so I decided to push him through an episode, ready for the rodeo.

ShoGun didn’t disappoint and it must have at least looked good, because Kirk said, “Gee Honey.  That was a great dismount!”

“It wasn’t intentional.” was all I could say.

ShoGun needed to break through this barrier.

So 2 days later, we finally got it.  And low and behold, it was a new love that was his savior and his distraction!

I volunteered to watch my neighbors horses and put them on the other side of the round pen.  On cue, they provided just enough distraction that ShoGun temporarily forgot Itchy and decided to focus his attentions on this very new, very loud colored Appaloosa and very short, very petite, miniature mare.  As he moved away from my cue, I put him to work and suddenly I saw the proverbial lightbulb come on over ShoGun’s head.  He turned his head toward me and it was clear he said…”Oh!  Is this what you want?”

I let him slow from the canter to the trot to the walk, and then to a standstill and like everything thing else with ShoGun, that was all it took.  He’s once again a SUPERSTAR, and his reward was a really long, fun trailride with new horses and people and new trails to explore.  He had a BLAST!  We walked, trotted, cantered A LOT and even ran and raced some.  He never missed a beat and we even rode circles around 2 of the horses in our group who were having some lameness issues.

I’d ride ahead, then circle back to see how they were doing.  ShoGun thought this was great fun and he exercised some independence for the first time.  He rode lead, point and everything in between and did everything flawlessly.  Heck, he behaved better than some of the well trained horses.  He didn’t try to bite, kick or intimidate anyone, and he was mindful of the herd dynamics to a fault, giving one older, wiser gelding adequate berth and staying out of the lead mares way.  But if I asked, he gave it and we even pushed past these pushy horses just to prove he could do it.

We rode western with a bosal and he was very very happy.  He was so happy in fact, he didn’t even answer back when Itchy neighed her woes to him.  He stood quiet when asked and didn’t move a muscle unless I asked.  I’m proud of my boy!  It’s clear he’s had his breakthrough.

ShoGun and I have been riding up a storm apparently.  I hasn’t quit raining since the first day I threw my leg over him.

Last week, after ShoGun reluctantly parted from his new love interest, a petite 3-year old mustang mare named Itchy (because she LOVES to be scratched), and let me have the priviledge of riding him.

We’ve trailered every day to new locations and made good use of our time in both our arena and the huge covered arena in Skowhegan.

Yesterday we rode through the pouring rain and took a long trail ride which included slogging through mud, water a foot deep and crossing various terrain which included logs, brush and all manner of brush.  ShoGun never missed a step.

We encountered dogs, trucks, bicycles, people and cars.  He was unflappable. 

I was most impressed with his level of collection and his overall ability to stride out and remain totally balanced.  His walk, trot and canter transitions are phenomenal!  He’s really putting all of our hard work together.  Most of all, I love that he regularly checks in with me.  He looks first right out of the corner of his eye, then left, but is always relaxed.  The only time he differed was when we came over the hill toward home and all of the crew came thundering toward him, whinnying to him as we came closer toward home.  That’s a LOT of distraction at our house with 7 personal horses and 3 additional mustangs in for training and adoption! He kept his composure though and truly seemed to enjoy our time together for this morning bright and early he was in the barn pestering me for more!  Or perhaps he was just thanking me for bringing him back to his beloved Itchy.  It really is a blossoming love story.

However, our vet, Dr. Dennis came out and ShoGun had a full dental and examination.  He passed with flying colors though he did have some sharp edges on his teeth that needed to be removed.

His accomplishments are many at this point!  He is sidepassing with ease now, though he sometimes mistakes the cues.  He backs without hesitation and can pivot left or right with ease.  He will also leg yield and we are working on backing, which is coming easily to him.  He bends left, right and any manner in between with just the lightest of touch.  Most of all, he just really seems to enjoy our time together.  Some might say he’s a Mamma’s boy.  Poor Itchy.

He is being ridden in a bosal which he loves!  He is whisper light, which I love!

Tomorrow we ride at the Skowhegan State Fair, Maine’s oldest continuously run fair and Saturday will be our debut at Tractor Supply!

Who would guess that a world traveled horse would even think about bucking, ShoGun has grazed the grasses of 12 different states, visited the Kentucky Horse Park, the White House in Washington D.C., eaten at Denny’s drive through, stayed at the Super 8 six different times and visited with Friesians, Andalusions, Belgian Drafts and raced the floor of 6 different large arenas, one a coliseum and the saddle proved to be the piece of the puzzle that would send him into orbit. There’s no denying that taking ShoGun to the Equine Extravaganza in Raleigh, NC was a calculated move. Watching ShoGun leap 4 feet into the air like a jack rabbit from a stand still over a little thing like a discarded napkin was enough to alert my common sense that ShoGun needed LOTS of stimulus if I was ever going to ride him safely. If walking up the front steps to the Department of the Interior or facing down bicycles (ridden by cops) wasn’t enough preparation, certainly there couldn’t be much that I’d missed, so with excited anticipation I placed my saddle upon ShoGun’s back and smiled delightedly as he walked calmly around the arena with me. He’s doing really well! I heard Kirk say, but then, watching ShoGun, I knew that what was about to happen might rival any 8 second buck-fest in Pro-Rodeo history.
Wait 40 seconds, I said, then, be ready to get out of the way!
Sure enough, in one split second ShoGun corked sky-high like some errant fire cracker. He’s so athletic that he took his hind foot and put it over his back, scooping as he went, I am sure, to rid himself of the saddle. Both Kirk and I scattered. Shogun’s fear inspired him to want to be near us, hence, my earlier warning to that like our beloved horses, we should be ready to take flight. It was a sight to see! He bucked headlong around the arena, twisting one way, then the other. When that didn’t work, he squirted the other direction putting head, neck, feet and body into motion, all going in different directions. He leaped straight up, then dove left, then right. He pounded the dirt with his hooves flying and sent dirt shrapnel everywhere. The only thing he didn’t do was bawl, which some horses do when they are really angry. Wow!! was all I could say. His power was phenomenal and his athleticism I knew was such that he could pick a fly off in mid-air. Literally.
I watched him clock a Moose fly and the grimy beast didn’t even see it coming! That’s tough to do. I know, I regularly hunt them. Then as quick as it had begun, it was over. ShoGun dropped his head, heaved a big sigh and came sauntering over to me, nestled his head to my chest and stood quiet as a kitten. He wasn’t even winded. Such is the way with ShoGun. He’s pure dynamite, but completely put together when he’s not totally coming apart.

Saddle + Bridle = Driving! ShoGun’s saddle training progressed without incident and he hasn’t offered to put any effort into bucking again. I think my decision to allow him plenty of room to *blow* was the right one. He has such a huge stride that we’ve spent 0 (zero) time in the round pen. Hell what am I saying, I don’t even have a round pen! Ha ha ha OK, I have access to one, but my round pen at the moment is housing bottle calves which fortunately are now big enough to wean.

Anyway, round pen or not, I’ve elected to work ShoGun in the arena and in an outside environment because my philosophies have always leaned toward a more forgiving approach and it’s working. ShoGun is doing wonderful! He had an initial bout of resistance to the bridle but after that he’s been eager to learn the basics of being under saddle much like he approached all of the excitement of being on the road. I suppled him with a snaffle the first 2 days and worked with him on ground driving but now we are riding and he’s enjoying it. He is still a bit insecure but we’ll get past that in the next few weeks. He prefers the bosal I am using to the bit. Not surprising. He didn’t know it, but the bit was just to help him understand the basics. He’s such a big and powerful mover that his first instinct is to “push”, not yield. We are working on the delicate balance of his understanding yield to pressure and he’s very sensitive when he wants to be and very stiff when he doesn’t. Particularly on the left, but he’s working with me and that is what counts. He is also doing well with his ground work. He’s learned to trot beside me. He will back on command and yield hind quarters and fore quarters readily. He’ll cross the bridge and he began to master backing and turning at the same time yesterday. He has come a long way!

Every great love story begins with a bang. Meeting ShoGun was no different.

ShoGun was waiting for me in Illinois when I arrived. My good friends, Les and Tracy Marlin had graciously agreed to pick ShoGun up for me since I would be arriving two days past the scheduled pick-up date.

My late arrival was for good reason. Traveling with me would be Jane from Mont Vernon, New Hampshire and fellow Makeover trainer, Michael Gerald.

Jane came along to choose a mustang of her own from the holding facility and to help choose a mustang for her friend and trainer, Fern. Both had always wanted a mustang and our chance meeting at the Somersworth, NH mustang adoption had facilitated a friendship.

I agreed to help choose Jane and Fern’s horse and to tame the mustangs and let Jane be a part of the whole process.

I couldn’t wait! Four mustangs, six days and 2800 miles. Could we do it?

Tracy and Les greeted us as we came in the drive, excited to watch another episode of The Extreme Mustang Makeover unfold.

They had watched me tame Lucy and Maggie for the MidWest Mustang Challenge and heartily looked forward to the next show.

ShoGun didn’t disappoint.

Housed in the indoor arena, the two horses charged full tilt around the arena as we peered excitedly over the entry gate, wary of our presence and wild to the bone.

As I watched ShoGun careen around the arena I listened as Les and Tracy told me about their experience trailering ShoGun and Michael’s horse, Dakota. It had all been pretty routine and both of the boys had been settled right up until we arrived. Now they were excited and it was clear they knew something was afoot.

Michael, excited to work with his horse stepped into the arena and began working with Dakota, but ShoGun would have none of it. He ran around the arena full tilt, taking Dakota with him. We both agreed it would be best to separate them.

The indoor was incredibly hot thanks to the 90 plus degree weather and it was clear that Dakota would likely run less without ShoGun’s influence. Yes, my boy was a hottie!

After ShoGun was separated I opened one of the stalls and he quickly darted in. It was clear he was uncomfortable in such a small space but given the heat, my choices were limited.

I have worked enough horses to know that ShoGun wasn’t going to be easy in this or any environment. He was excitable and fearful with the stamina of a thoroughbred. Standing 15.2 hh and a lithe 1100 lbs., ShoGun had the moves of a warmblood and the stamina of a champion endurance horse. Keeping him moving was the worst thing I could do. Mustangs like ShoGun will run themselves to death before they will yield. In the heat (magnified in the indoor arena), 20 minutes of vigorous exercise could have caused him heat stroke. It was a delicate situation for a very sensitive horse.

I knew from his papers that ShoGun had been captured in December of 2006. He’d been castrated just 3 months later. From the Dry Lakes herd, I knew that not only was he hearty, but heavily influenced by the thoroughbred stallions turned out in this herd to increase the genetic diversity. ShoGun looked very much like his thoroughbred ancestry but with all of the instincts natural selection imparts to the mustang. It was an awesome combination!

ShoGun blew loudly, his head held high as I stepped into his stall and then, without warning, he was on top of me, his hooves pawing over my head.

Mustangs that are threatened will sometimes attack aggressively. I’ve seen it a number of times. When they feel cornered their instincts to survive take over and ShoGun wanted past me and out of the stall.

I instinctively moved in closer to him to take up some of the space between us, the only thing I could do given the circumstances. In retaliation, he spun and gave me both barrels with his hind feet, flattening me against the wall with his rump. Then he retreated, spun and came at me again.

I stepped aside; nursing my left knee. ShoGun had landed his last kick, but because I’d been close to him, the damage had been minimized. I rushed toward him again, popping him on the chest and throwing my body toward him aggressively to signal to him my boundaries. He backed off, spun, kicked and came in again, his hooves churning up the stall’s bedding into a fine dust that powdered the air.

Instinct is my friend, but this time experience saved me. ShoGun wasn’t giving any ground and it was clear that if I didn’t get him straight on the path toward respect that we’d have no less than a horse bound for slaughter.

I reached through the stall bars and grabbed my short driving whip. I use the whip sometimes to help desensitize horses, never to hit them. But ShoGun took the movement as another challenge and once again he rushed into me. I let him come and stung him hard on the nose with the whip.

I didn’t want to hurt ShoGun, but horses that are panicked, fearful and fighting for their life such as ShoGun was, will stop at nothing to go free. Freedom for ShoGun was out of that stall and back with his friend Dakota. He was extremely determined to get past me and back to his friend.

I needed to help him understand that I was there to help him, not hurt him and stinging him with the whip started us on that path.

ShoGun shook his head and backed into the far corner of the stall, this time eyeing me.

Then he charged again, snapping with his teeth.

He was going to be tough to reach.

Horses like ShoGun are often labeled rogues. For the inexperienced, and sometimes, the experienced, they present challenges that are life threatening. ShoGun had spent his three years surviving by using his athleticism and fleet of feet and as a horse with a busy mind, he had had enough of confinement. He wanted out of that stall and he was willing to pound down walls to get it. He kicked viciously at the back wall, frustrated and angry that I’d proven to be an unwavering barrier.

I knew from working other horses like ShoGun that underneath his behavior was an extraordinary horse. The best ones always start out hard to reach.

I stepped forward and spoke softly to ShoGun, letting him know that I wasn’t there to harm him. He arched forward with his neck, defensive of his position, but this time he remained in his corner. I thanked him and left the stall. I wanted him to have a chance to think about our relationship. He’d given just a little bit of ground and I wanted him to know that I appreciated that.

He wouldn’t rush me again that day, but he did religiously keep his guard up.

That evening when it was cooler I opened ShoGun’s stall and let him out into the indoor. He tore out of the stall, ever vigilant about his freedom. We worked together for several minutes with ShoGun giving me everything but his cooperation.

It was so hot I turned on the hose and let him run through the stream of water, desensitizing him while cooling him at the same time. He kicked vigorously every time I put the water on his legs, giving no indication that the water was desensitizing him at all. But he did enjoy the coolness of the water and at the end, stood for me to hose him, but would not allow me close enough to touch him.

The next morning ShoGun stepped up his efforts to avoid me. Horses sometimes do this, even when you’ve ended on a good note. They process things over time and it was clear that ShoGun had decided that I wasn’t on his list of chosen friends.

He zoomed around the arena faster than ever, giving no ground. Instead of chasing him, I grabbed a lawn chair and set up camp in the middle of the arena. If my eyes were closed he would stop thirty feet away and snort, his head held low and his ears pinned. If they were open, he’d run circles around me. My body remained still. His level of alert was so high that he literally watched my eye movement for cues to take flight!

After 45 minutes ShoGun had not slowed down. Every pump of my heart drove energy into him.

It’s hard to see horses so afraid of people. ShoGun, I think, had some bad experiences that were haunting him. Sensitive horses need time and patience. Extra sensitive horses need time, patience and therapeutic training to help them process our involvement without endangering themselves or the handler. With skill, he would never appear insecure. Without, he’d most likely end up labeled as dangerous.

Getting up from my chair, I started heaving everything I could find into the arena.

I drug in all of the lawn chairs, the air mattress from my horse trailer, plastic barrels, a kiddie pool, and dumped all of my training equipment out onto the arena floor.

ShoGun went ballistic with each addition, but as the arena floor filled with new things, he slowed from a run, then down to a trot and finally, he began to walk. Then, just as I expected, he set up camp in a corner. This would be his safe place.

I sat down for a bit and waited for ShoGun to realize that I wasn’t there to intimidate him. His breathing slowed and then, he lowered his head.

I stood up from my chair and began to approach. When he moved off, I worked with him through body language to begin taking a leadership role. Working freestyle, I inspected each of the items I’d brought into the ring and waited for ShoGun to mimic me.

Together we explored the barrels, the lawn chairs and the air mattress. ShoGun showed a lot of interest in everything but the training equipment and the plastic kiddie pool. He completely ignored the training equipment and nervously regarded the pool.

ShoGun calmed in this exercise and finally, he allowed me to stroke his nose and slowly, I slipped a halter over his head. We did this exercise several more times and with each success, ShoGun began to put more and more faith in our relationship.

He was still extremely guarded and adamant that I stay in front of him. He refused to let me past his neck and tried to kick or bite me (sometimes both at the same time) if I somehow managed to move past his head and into his side.

Ignoring protocol, I elected to abandon the thought that I might pet ShoGun’s sides, belly, legs or rump and instead showed him the lead rope. He snorted heartily and tore off around the arena.

Then, slowly, ShoGun allowed me to attach the rope and then he would tear off around the arena.

Sometimes I held onto the rope and sometimes I would let it go, alternating ShoGun’s experience and working to help him understand the pressure principles that would keep him light on the halter.

Soon, ShoGun was following me and then, he began to let go of his anxiety. He started sighing and enjoying my rubbing of his head. So much so that he buried his head several times like a child might hide in their mother’s skirt.

We ended the session with ShoGun following me over the air mattress, past the dreaded plastic pool and back to his stall where I removed his halter and gave his head a good rub. He still would not let me rub his side.

The next morning ShoGun and I worked to overcome his lack of enthusiasm for my being in his vitals area. He reacted by attacking me again. This time his rush was shorter in duration but his effort was the same. He spun, kicking and then turned to clip at me with his teeth. I countered by rushing at him which sent him retreating to his corner. And then it was over. ShoGun began to work with me. I haltered him and we stepped out of the stall and into the arena for a quick review of his new knowledge of leading on the halter. As soon as he showed interest in working with me, I opened the arena gate and we stepped out into the open yard.

This was the moment I’d been waiting for. The moment I would get to show ShoGun the freedom of the out of doors again. He’d been cooped up too long in the holding pen and his mind was ready to begin exploring his new world. He didn’t disappoint. Where his feet had been stuck to the ground in the indoor arena, he now moved forward with enthusiasm, making it easy to teach him to follow me on the line. He was loving it!

We ended our walk with ShoGun loading off and on the trailer.

It was the same with Smokie and George, Jane and her trainer’s horses. Each horse was gentled, than taken outside, a reward for their hard work in trusting me.

By day four ShoGun, Smokie and George and Michael’s horse, Dakota, were loaded up and ready for our trip to Kentucky where we stayed overnight at the first class Saddles and Sheets horse hotel (www.saddlesandsheets.com) where once again, the owner, Steve greeted us enthusiastically and made sure the horses stalls were bedded two feet deep in straw!

That evening we gave ShoGun, Smokie and George baths to wash away the sweat and grime of the previous days and let them graze outside the next morning before our push for New Jersey where we would deliver Michael and Dakota to their home.

The horses traveled well and on each leg of the trip they learned more and more about the outside world. I think it’s fair to say that they enjoyed every minute.

Once home ShoGun and I prepared for our trip to North Carolina for the Equine Extravaganza. ShoGun and I went to represent Equissentials and The Mustang Heritage Foundation as well as my company The Mirror Effect and to give ShoGun the stadium-like experience that he’ll have in Fort Worth.

ShoGun’s favorite part was getting to watch all of the excitement. He took everything in!
ShoGun even participated in the breed presentation for mustangs.

We met many wonderful people there, including fellow Extreme Mustang Makeover trainers, Jim Thomas who brought his lovely mare Reba for everyone to admire and Dave Robart of Robart Pinchless bits (www.pinchlessbits.com).

SHOGUN GOES TO WASHINGTON, D.C.!

During our trip ShoGun grazed on the grasses of seven different states but his favorite was the grass of The White House.

ShoGun was a big hit with the public who loved the fact that ShoGun was a mustang and property of the United States Government
(photo of ShoGun and the public)

My favorite part of our stop in D.C. ShoGun went up the steps of The Department of the Interior! This is the government entity that manages the wild mustangs.

ShoGun at the Department Of Interior

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Just one of 200 trainers chosen from across the United States, Karina will represent Maine September 17-21,2008 as a contestant at the Will Rogers Memorial center in Fort Worth, Texas.

Karina will travel to Ewing, Illinois to pick up her challenge horse where she will have just 100 days to train her mustang in preparation for the competition.

The competition focuses on trainer’s demonstrating the versatility and train ability of this American icon. For more information on the incredible program, CLICK HERE!

This is my horse for the challenge he is a 3 year old gelding and we named him ShoGun! (he is the big guy in the video)

View the short video now Click HERE.

Many Thanks to Michele Cole who made this possible!  We are absolutely thrilled with our new site and the many new changes she has helped us to make others aware of!  Check back often for new clinic dates, book information, client stories, discounts from our favorite vendors and more!  Oh, and if any of you were thinking about using Michele too, she’s ours!  heh heh heh