The Taste of Defeat - My Horses Weren't Ready

It's been a week and a half now, and I've had time to recover and lick my wounds.  I'd appreciate any feedback anyone has on my experience.

So June 8th, I went down to Terrell for the Antique Tractor Show and Tractor Pull.  This is my 3rd year going down to this event, and not only is it a well run event, but it also gives me the chance to spend a day with some of my best friends, Mark and Bev McGowan of the Double M Warhorse Ranch.

My job was the same as years past.  Let the girls look pretty for people, then go down to the tractor pull and show the people how tough two draft horses can be (how far can they pull the tractor pull sled).  We've done alright in the past, and the folks at this event really look forward to it now.  I had worked the girls on the mower a week prior, and then done the 3 abreast stuff a few days after that.  I figured that would be enough to prime the girls back into pulling shape.  Boy was I wrong.

Everything started out great.  I arrived with no problems.  The girls looked amazing.  All shiny and clean.  Mark and Bev had brought their dapple shire mare Ruby, her foal Diva, and their Black clydesdale mare Pride.  We had lots of visitors swing by and pet on the horses.  It was a nice easy going morning.

Pam and Rachael in their stalls

This is Ruby, a dapple shire, and her foal Diva

I want to do a quick shout-out to the Tractor Supply in Terrell.  They donated enough panels for us to make 2 giant pens for the horses.  They also were there to make sure we were OK and see if we needed anything else.  They really went out of their way to make this event good for us.  Because of this, I hung a Tractor Supply bandana from my yoke, and I also sported a Tractor Supply hat for them.  :)

Harnessing up the girls

Another shot of me working between the girls

Thank you Tractor Supply!!

At 12:30 it was time for us to pull, so I pulled the girls out of their pen, harnessed them up, and headed down to the tractor pull.  On the way down, I let some kids who'd been loving on the girls actually try their hand with the lines as we walked.  They were so excited.  I really enjoy watching kids smile as they get to know draft horses.

Here is one of the kids I let drive

I turned into the tractor pull area, and the bandstand was full.  There was probably a few hundred people all sitting in the stands, waiting to watch the horses pull.  It was then that I realized I had forgot my evener.  Luckily, a fellow teamster had come over to say hi, and he happily held the horses for me while I ran back to get it.  Once I got back, it was our time to shine.

A fellow teamster who helped hold the girls while I ran back and got my evener

This is Mark McGowan and their black Clydesdale Pride.

Bev gave a grand introduction.  She is my friend, and I think she brags me up a little too much, but I smiled and waved.  I then moved the girls into position, and we hooked everything up.  The tractor was set on it's second gear, just like the past 2 years.  The horses were standing calm and at ease.  Things were looking great.  Then ... things changed.

I asked the girls to step out, and they started moving their feet, but they did not pull.  They didn't pull the sled an inch.  They were moving their feet but just refusing to really dig down and pull.  I stopped them,  got things re-situated again, and once again, told them to step up.  Once again, they leaned forward, but refused to dig in and pull.  I began whipping their butts with the lines to try to persuade them to go, but they wouldn't.  I had never seen this from them before.  I was baffled, and couldn't understand what was happening.  I tried one more time, and it was the same.  At this point I turned to the sled operator guy, and asked him to put in on 1st gear, just to help coax the girls into pulling.  They wouldn't even pull that an inch.  Finally, after what seemed like forever (but was probably only 5-10 minutes), I admitted defeat.  I threw the lines up on Pam's hame, and Mark and I grabbed the lead ropes in front of the horses and we started to walk them.  At this point, they did dig in, and they pulled the sled all the way across the field.  We then unhooked, and I drove the girls out of the area.

I was so embarrassed.  It didn't help that while I was unhitching, one of the tractor guys got on the mic and said "Up next, we're gonna have tractors that you definitely don't have to get in front of and pull".  Oh how that was lemon juice in a wound.  So I did the walk of shame away from the pull with a team that refused to get into their collars and pull.

I wasn't happy with that performance, so we didn't go back to their lush accommodations.  We headed right into an open field, and I worked them.  I didn't have any weight to pull behind them, so we ran.  up and down we ran.  I kept them trotting constantly for a good 10 minutes.  At this point, my boot broke.  The sole on my right boot came un-stitched from heel to heel around the front, which made running behind horses almost impossible.  So I walked the girls back to the trailer, tied them, and fixed my boot with some tape.  After I was done with that, I took the girls back out to the field and we worked for another 30 minutes.  Running, stopping, starting, over and over and over.

Here they are later in the afternoon.  I kept their harnesses on because they were supposed to pull again later in the afternoon, but that ended up getting cancelled because they had too many tractors who wanted to pull the sled.

I was still scratching my head, trying to figure out what happened?  What went wrong?  As I was working the girls after, I noticed that when I said Step Up, Pam took a step right off, but Rachael did not.  She would lean forward as if feeling for a load, then step off.  This made me think that maybe Pam was just following Rachael's lead, and that Rachael was being unwilling.  This just lead to more questions:  Was Rachael getting too old?  Are her feet hurting her?  is she sore from the collar?

As I've thought about it for the past week and a half, the only conclusions I can draw are that 1) Rachael was sore in her collar from working the mower after a long break in working; or 2) the 3 months off required much more sled work to remind them to get into the pull, and I just didn't do it.

This is the first time I've felt this kind of defeat with my horses.  They have always spoiled me with their good behavior and willingness to do what I wanted.  This sure was an eye opener to me that I gotta keep them working during off times.  I'll update this with pictures later.  Any feedback is appreciated.

Training Koda for Throw Away Ponies - Session 2

Last night I went back out to the Throw Away Ponies rescue, and worked with Koda again.  This was our second session together.  Read all about the first one HERE.

So ... quick summary.  Last session, we ended with doing a little bit of driving with a person in front of her.  She really didn't like the bit though, and really acted out when she felt it.

I had been informed that they have been working with her more, and that she is slowly getting better.  A few night ago they tried to work her with the bit, and she blew up on them.  Definitely NOT like the draft horses I'm used to working with.  :)

I got there and re-introduced myself to Koda.  Since she blew up on them a few days ago, I re-introduced myself by doing some joining up.  I think this is one of the coolest things in horse training.  It's just amazing to watch the horse and see things click for them.  If you don't know what joining up is, you can read about it on Monty Roberts website, and the following video shows it very well.



Koda joined up nicely in about 10-15 minutes.  She's a smart little thing, and always trying to do what you want.

Since one of the problems I had last time was her wanting to turn and look at me when I talked to her from behind, I worked on that a little before I even harnessed her.  I'd tell her woah, as I pet down her side, slowly working towards her butt.  On her right side she was totally fine with it.  But on the left side, as soon as I got near her rear let, she'd spin to look at me.  BAD HABIT!  I just kept working it, and when I would get behind her without her spinning, I'd ask her to step up and kiss at her.  On the right side, she responded perfectly, by stepping forward.  On the left, she still wanted to spin and look at me.  We kept doing this until she had quit doing the spinning thing.

Then I harnessed her, and put the bridle on.  She did fine with this.  She can be a little jumpy with the chains when they first come out, but she's getting used to it more and more.

I did some quick leading with the harness on, followed by the thing I was doing before, where I'd walk behind her, and tell her to step up (without actually holding the lines.  She was queueing up nicely on that.  She did so well, that I asked for one of the volunteers there to help me.  I had her hop on the lines, and I stood at Koda's head, to help queue her into doing the right thing.  I've found that it takes two people who know what they are doing to really do this right.  Not only am I training Koda, but I'm also training the awesome folks at TAP on how to do this for themselves.  So I stood right at Koda's head, and I listened for command to "step up".  When I heard that, I took a step.  If Koda didn't, I would quickly grab the lead rope, and pull her with me.  Same thing with Woah.  If she didn't stop right away, I'd grab the lead rope and pop it down.  Koda did great with this.  This was also a time for Kelly (my help) to learn about line tension.  the feel of lines that are looped through a harness is different than just a pair of reins in your hands.  Kelly was getting the hang of this.

Soon Kelly peeled Koda away from me, and Koda walked around great on her own.  It was pretty cool to watch.  I thought we'd turned a corner and that she was done ... but I was wrong.

It wasn't long after that that Koda started throwing her head again, and just being a butt.  It's as if she just decides she's been with us long enough and is ready to be done.  She got very bad, and quickly resorted back into the "flip and face you" tactics I thought we'd gotten over.

So we went back to Kelly driving, and me at Koda's head for a few more minutes.  Then we ended things on a good note.

I do admit that working Koda is trying my patience.  After 2 days of training a draft horse, you are usually pulling a tire around the arena.  The fact that I still haven't even hooked up an evener is a little sad to me.  But ... we gotta take our time and go at her speed.  This is definitely a new experience for me, and I'm learning a lot.  They are going to keep working her, and I'll go back again in a week or so.  Little by little!  

3 Abreast on a Pioneer Forecart

Last night I knocked another thing off my bucket list.  I hitched up all 3 of my mares to the pioneer forecart.  This is something I've been meaning to do for some time.  A while back I even had my buddy Pat Chase get me a triple tree so I could do it, but it's been collecting dust ever since.  That is ... until last night.

I wanted to work the girls again last night, because we have that event this Saturday.  I had initially thought about just pulling the sled around with the girls, but I had this nagging thought about Nellie.  I've worked her, and even driven down the road with her, but I just don't use her that much.  Suddenly my mind formulated the idea that maybe instead of pulling the sled, I should hitch all 3 mares up to the pioneer cart.  There were a lot of particulars I had to work out in my mind though.

First, what order am I going to put the girls in.  Last time I ground drove them 3 up, I had Nellie in the middle (Link HERE).  That didn't work so good.  I use my team lines and 2 extra cross check lines to control the horses.  With Nellie in the middle, the cross checks for the inside bit of the other horses were hooked to her.  What would happen is that if I said to step out, and she didn't, Pam and Rachael would be turned to the center, and all 3 horses would come face to face.  Not an ideal solution.  This led me to decide to keep Pam and Rachael the same, and just have Pam be the inside horse.  Why Pam on the inside?  Cuz she's big and listens well.  When I say to step, she does.  This would keep the 3 way head butt I described earlier from happening.  Also, this configuration means I can keep the pole between Rachael and Pam ... and they are used to it.

Next, I had to figure out how to hook up the pioneer forecart.  This is where the pioneer cart really shines.  It is easily configurable to fit any scenario I wanted.  Option 1: leave the team pole in the center, and offset the hitch bolt to the left.  This basically means Rachael and Pam will be exactly the same as they normally are, and just adds Nellie to the outside on the left.  The horses won't be centered this way.  Option 2:  move the team pole to the right, and leave the hitch pin in the center.  This is the way to use the cart if you want it centered with the horses.  This way would have Pam directly center in front of the cart.  I went with option 1, mostly because I wouldn't have to get out a wrench to move the pole.

Here's an example of keeping the pole in the center, and moving the hitch pin to the side to accommodate the triple tree..

Next I had to figure out which way to hook the triple tree.  My triple tree is a pioneer brand one.  It has one big bar, with one horse hooked to one end, and a normal team evener hooked to the other.  I determined that since I was leaving Rachael and Pam the same on the cart, that I'd let them share the team evener.  This would then put Nellie on the outside evener alone.  This made sense in my head.  After using it, I think it would be better to put the team evener away from the pole.  Look at the picture above and you'll see why.  The double tree has a lot of interference with the team pole when done the way I did.  If I did it the other way (like the picture above) that won't happen.

This was my setup.  Next time I'll hook it up the other way.

I got home, plans fresh in my mind, and gathered and harnessed the horses.  Getting that one extra horse ready adds time!  Especially since Nellie's harness was last used on Buck, so I had to re-size it and fit it to her.  Soon, I had 3 pretty girls, who were ready to be hooked up to the cart.  Before I get to that, I used the lines the same way I did last time.  Team lines with the outside lines going to the outside 2 horses, and the cross-check lines both going to the center horse.  Then 2 separate cross check lines running from the center horses hame ring, to the inside bit of each outer horse.  (lots more on this HERE)

This is how I have my lines setup. 

Hitching up the cart was much easier than I expected.  This is where I'll brag on the Belgian horse a bit.  I LOVE that I can pull these big girls out, and they are just laid back and easy going.  Adding Nellie to the trailer next to Pam was new, but no one seemed to care.  Even as I was hitching up the tugs and adjusting everything, they just were not excitable at all.  I LOVE the Belgian horse!  They are so easy to work.

3 mares hitched up, ready to go.

Here's a better shot of the rig. 

I was a little bit nervous.  This was the first time to try this, and I was working alone.  I didn't know how Nellie would respond when I asked her to back up so we could swing left and head off.  This is where my love of Belgians continues.  I untied them, hopped on the forecart, and asked the girls to back.  All 3 girls backed up perfectly, and soon we were on our way!

I was on cloud 9.  We got into the pasture and I could see the girls kind of feeling out this new thing.  Nellie (the new girl) was a little ansty, and was walking out fast.  This kept causing her to turn inward into Pam due to the cross check line.  The more steps she took, the more she calmed down.  Soon she was walking even with all the others, and we really had a nice uneventful drive.

The teamsters view has changed!  3 butts instead of 2!!  :)

What I learned most from this is the importance of line tension when driving multiple horses.  With a team it's easy to get a little relaxed and have loose lines.  When you have a good team, they'll do the right thing for you and keep their spacing pretty good.  For 3 up, I found that they did best, when I kept tension on those lines.  I had to keep just enough tension on those outside lines to keep Rachael and Nellie from turning in on Pam.  Once I figured that out, they all walked perfectly straight.

Taking a break. 

Of course, working them with just the cart caused the horses not to work at all.  So I figured out a cure for that.  After a break, I locked the brakes on the cart down pretty good.  Not enough to lock the wheels, but enough to give lots of resistance.  I then had the girls step off.  This worked great, and gave the girls some resistance.  I'm not sure Nellie has ever actually pulled a load, so this was good for her.  She got to feel the pressure on her collar and understand how to push into it.

Great night!  I'm so happy to have this configuration in my arsenal now.  Now I can use 3 horses instead of 2 for big jobs.  :)

Cutting the field for the first time with my IH #9 Mower!

I need to get the horses ready for the event in Terrell this next Saturday; my field is long; I have an IH #9 mower that I restored and still haven't used; and I had some spare time on Sunday afternoon.  Combine those together and you get a good time!!!  It's high time I do something with these lazy horses, and try out my mower.  Yesterday it was a cool 80 degrees with a nice breeze.  Couldn't ask for much more.

I pulled the horses out of the pasture, and got them all prettied up.  Then I hitched up the sickle mower for the first time.  As usual, I was working alone, so it took me a little time to adjust the breast straps and hitch to fit properly.

Getting all hooked up.

A nice shiny mower behind some nice clean horses.  We're about to change that.

Just to ensure I had hitched up right, I started driving while walking behind the mower.  I figured it would be safer that way just in case there was a problem.  I got into the field, and decided to try it out.  This is when I learned a few lessons:

1. When draft horses walk slow, it doesn't take much to jam a sickle blade.  5 feet after turning the blades on I got my first jam.  I instantly saw why the #9 high gear would be a desirable thing to have.  As long as I kept the girls walking at a more brisk pace, we were usually fine and could push through thick grass without the bar getting stuck.
2. Driving a straight line is harder than you think.  With a mower leaving an actual trail of cut grass, it's very obvious how straight (or crooked) you're driving is.  I found that the first cut down the edge was the hardest to do straight, but after that, it was much easier due to being able to follow the cut line.
3. Sickle jams are easy to fix when your horses are awesome!  As I started getting snags, I learned I had to lift the blade up, and get off of the seat and walk behind the bar to clean out the teeth.  Most of the time there was really long grass that had been pulled between the top of the sickle blade and the top of the sickle guide.  I'd rip as much of that out as I could then start again.  While ripping out the clogged up grass, the horses were perfect.  They stood perfectly still, and never moved a muscle.  Makes a teamster beam with pride to have horses like that.
4. Restarting after a jam is tricky.  I found that after a jam if I just dropped the blade and started forward again that it would bind up instantly.  It takes a good few steps before the horses have the mower moving at a good speed. I tried stepping back a few steps, then starting again, but doing that, you have to get the bar underneath all the grass that you just cut.  That led to some instant jams too.  What I eventually resorted to, was pulling a circle, and dropping the blade a ways back and slowly cutting back into the original position.  That seemed to work OK.
5. If you're gonna cut hay with a #9 mower ... you need to have a fence row mower for parts!  As we were finishing parts of the pasture with a few more rows to go, I suddenly hit a BIG snag.  The girls were really pulling well, and it ended up pulling the mower 2 feet with the wheels locked.  When I backed the mower up a bit, I saw something by Rachael's rear foot.  When I looked closer, I found my right hub, cracked in half.  That last snag was so harsh that it broke the hub in half where the hairline fracture was when I installed it (Link Here).  It also broke some pieces off of the wheel itself.  I couldn't believe it broke like that.  So that instantly put a stop to the mowing.  I'm stuck now till I find a replacement part.

All in all it was a pretty good time.  I got much better at driving the girls while mowing the more I did it.  They were being a little lazy which meant I had to be pretty vocal to keep them walking.  They did great though.  I'll let the rest of the pictures speak for themselves.  If anyone has any tips on mowing, or knows a place to get mower parts besides Macknairs, I'm all ears.  :)

Just cleaned out the sickle bar  while the girls stood perfectly.

The teamster's view

Stopping for a Jam.  See all that grass on the blade?

Front view.

What a jam!  LOTS of grass stuck on that one.

A look behind.  3 or 4 rows done.

DISASTER!  Broken Hub!  You can even see where it broke part of the wheel.  BOO!

Two halves of the hub, with springs and pawls in the toolbox.

The stopping point.  Lots of the mowing was done, just a strip down the center to go.

North End of the pasture was done

Another view of the North end of the pasture.  You can see a few spots I missed.  I'm definitely a work in progress.

And here's how it was accomplished.  Pam, happy to have her bridle off after a long day of work.

A tired Rachael, ready for some hay and oats.