April 7, 2018
The Mikey Report
It was lightly raining when I got there about 10:30 in the morning. I decided to just work with Mr. Mikey in his own paddock. I donned a rain coat and hat and grabbed my tools: a regular short-ish dressage whip, a much longer flexible whip, my "target" (tennis ball stuck permanently on the end of an old dressage whip), my clicker, a couple of fanny packs filled to the brim with treats and a shedding blade.
I walked up to his paddock from the parking area and he met me at the gate of his home paddock. I took his halter from the hook just outside his main gate but did not put it on him etc. From there, I walked all the way towards the back of  his home paddock to see what it was like in his run in shed just in case the rain escalated. I was wearing very good mud boots (a blessing).
Mikey followed me all the way to the back side. I groomed him all over and checked his chest (skin healing just fine) and he just stood there (no halter) while I did this.  Got some old winter hair off of him.  I found a spot of high ground (no puddles) and put on his halter.  Then I tested if he was willing to step sideways with his front feet if I touched him in the middle of his shoulder. Yes and yes. Click and treat! Then I worked on asking. him to yield his haunches to a slight whip touch on the same side as I was standing on and he readily stepped sideways with his haunches to whatever way I indicated. More click/treat. Then I tried taking the LONG flexible, light whip and tapping him on the OPPOSITE haunch from where I was standing (note: I had to reach over his back, traverse wise; also note: I use the command "over" as I ask for any traverse steps from him coupled with tapping or finger tip pressure) and he finally got it if I asked him to bring his left hip right ways (step counterclockwise) but he could not make the mental leap to do the other way. So, I tried several times and he kept offering that he yield just the left hip towards the right even if I was tapping him on his right hip (and I'd also step back and revert to the "regular" way of asking him to yield his haunches with. me on the same side and he was fine with that...).  So, I then took him closer to. his run in shed and used it as a "block" so he would not want to step his haunch into the building from that position, I stood at his left shoulder, reached over his back with my uber long light whip and tapped his right haunch hoping he'd make the leap and step over towards the right. He did it and I gave him an enthusiastic thumbs up and a click and TWO treats (a jackpot).  But that was the only time I could make him do it in that direction.  However, during this training session, I could not get him to recreate the same move as he refused to stand near the run in after that. I tried some out in the open but he kept just going back to yielding the left hip to the right (despite being tapped and "prodded" to do the opposite)...so I gave that up and pledged to try it another day. At one point he got a bit mad at me so I decided to go onto something else.  He is an overachiever and likes getting the right answer.  He also likes to experiment.  I am jazzed that he did rather comfortably make the learning leap that if I stood near his right shoulder and tapped onto his left hip (reached over and across his spine) that he could manage that aokay.  Then I tested him on "target" and he got jackpots for correctly touching his nose to the tennis ball even if it was way up in the air about 3 feet from his face...but at the level of his ears...and he also got a click/jackpot for reaching down to the ground and correctly touching the tennis ball after I would say "target" and offer it to him.  In the future, I'm going to try to get further and further away from him and make him "work" for his click and treat more on this one.  At one point he was nuzzling the old dressage whip instead of the tennis ball and I did not give him a click or treat...so he figured that out and immediately went for the tennis ball with his nose. Click and treat!
I also checked in with him on lowering his head. He was better than yesterday. It is not confirmed...but at least we were starting from him having a more level head/neck carriage...I would gently place my hand on the upper third of his crest and NOT press down but say "put your head down."  His eyes were blinking slowly during this part of our session...and he even appeared almost to yawn.  I tested him from BOTH sides about this and did my best to avert him turning his nose into my space (I would either use my finger tips and gently prod him away as all I want is for him to keep his head and neck centered to his chest and put his head down to that...sometimes I held my arm so my elbow pointed down to the g round and if he tried to turn his big head into my space he would end up touching my forearm instead and it served as a sort of "guard" so he would go back to more neutral straight head carriage).  ANY semblance of lowering the head was rewarded. A few times he took a slight step backwards coupled with lowering the head and I felt compelled to reward it anyway because at least his head was going DOWN. And then I noticed he began to VOLUNTEER dropping his head (a few times to the ground) and I rewarded one of those despite the fact I had not primed him or requested it...I felt it was a step in the right direction. Click and treat anyway at least in that case.  I also was sure to give him his treats (after the click) in a space LOW so he had to release his head and neck in an even more downward position to get his reward.
I also did a quick check in on"whoa" and "come" and told him whoa and walked about 5 feet off and did a semi circle in front of him. He just stood there. Click and treat. Then I stepped back, curled down a bit and made the stroking motion as if I was winding an imaginary lead rope into my solar plexus and I kissed at him and he immediately broke rank and walked towards me. click and treat!
I then began to make motions that I had to go (I'd spent about 40 min. with him).  I took off his halter and he followed to the front. I made him back 2x (to verbal) as he had no halter on. And he got rewarded (click first, of course).  Then I exited the paddock and asked him to back one more time away from his fence line and he did so so I gave him a click and treat and told him I'd see him on Tues.
Ms. Toye, his owner, said he really likes Jolly Ranchers so we are going today to buy him some.  I used a lot of carrot bits, some horse treats and some rock candy today for his treats.  He loved all of it of course.