Udex under saddle!

     I have a terrible habit of slacking off and leaving this poor blog in the dust! The main reason I write in this is for my horse and I! I go back and read to remind me of how far we have come along. It's a frequent reminder of how hard work pays off when you put effort into it! So anyways, back to Udex! So, as I said in the last post, he is getting fresh grass and gaining muscle. That much we already know. Now lets go to actual Udex, not Udex improvements. I think its about time I write about him, and not about how he is coming along! I would love to share his beautiful personality with everyone!! (-: So here goes!! I might have to do this in several parts, depending on how long I go! So today will be Udex under saddle!

     Horses use different sides of their brains, just like people! I know, cool right? Anyways, you have left brained, and right brained horses! To sum it up, I'm going to quote Pat Parelli and Mary Ann Kennedy here on these...

• Right brained introvert: He gets scared you could get hurt!
• Right brained extrovert: He gets bracy, some call him crazy!
• Left brained introvert: He likes to argue, and to defy you!
• Left brained extrovert: He's a little mouthy; wilfully naughty!

  Okay, so I am hoping your getting a good idea of those brain types here and the way the horses think! Now usually domesticated horses usually only use one side of their brains, and are either an introvert or extrovert, just like humans. You can tell which side of their brain they use by A) the side of their neck the mane falls to, and B) while they are free running the leading foot they use while in canter! When you want to check for A, look to what side the mane falls on, for example, if the mane falls to the left, then the horse is probably right brained! If it falls to the right, then it is probably left brained! Just like how I right with my right hand, but use my left side of my brain! If your horse has a "sloppy mane" with chunks falling to both the left and right, you can either try and see which side most of it falls to, or we can do B, which is watch him while he is free running out in the field! If he chooses to canter with his left foot leading, then he is probably left brained, whereas if he chooses to canter his right foot, then he is probably right brained!! In the wild horses usually use both sides. Left brain for thinking, and the right brain for instincts such as running from predators, etc.

Udex cantering with is right leg leading!

     Okay, so back to Udex! So now that you know a bit more about left and right brains, I can describe to you the type of horse Udex is! He is one of the very rare types that uses both right and left brained, an ambidextrous horse! Some days he is so left brained! He is being a little naughty, trying to be sneaky, protector of his herd, well just typical left brained! However, some days, like today, he is a total right brained horse! Every thing scares him! On a right brained day, something like a dog barking scares the life out of him, and a tractor in the field makes him half pass speedy quick to the side! On a left brained day, he does not mind the tractors or the dogs. Now this is the same with a lot of other things he sees! He is both an introvert, and an extrovert! 

Now you can sort of see the white underneath his eye
Rumor has it that when a horse has white
by his eye, it usually means he is crazy. ;D

     On top of being both left and right brained, he is extremely energetic! As with any real warmblood, you can stand there and lunge him for an hour, and work him up to a sweat, but still he will still have enough energy that as soon as you get on him you can feel the readiness he has to start a trot, or, even better, a canter! Personally, I love the energy! (-: I'm not going to lie though, some days I dread riding him! He is forever fresh! The other day I was riding him and he was a bit frustrated from several reasons. Udex decided to try and be sneaky and buck. Now I am only 4'10'', and he is well over 17.hh tall. This wasn't a little buck, it was a huge, energetic warmblood buck! I have sat bucks many times, so his buck was nothing I couldn't handle. I gave him a good whack on the butt, then took him at a canter a while! The point of cantering him is to make him do more work then he expected. To him it means his plan backfired on him! Anyways, it's not often he does something like buck, but he is not a perfect horse (nor is any other horse out there!) so it's no big deal! (-: A typical ride with Udex involves calming him down (because he has a fear of being alone these days) and after he is calmed down to start our real ride. 

On days we have our occasional fits, where he either spooks, or wants does something else crazy. For instance, some days when I start a trot, he starts to take canter steps! I just keep on doing rising trot and pushing him forward and ignore the bad behavior, and eventually he gets the hint and in no time is at a nice steady trot. It feels amazing to ride him though! He is so intelligent! He knows every dressage movement and secret there is! He has taught me, and continues to still teach me, so much! He responds so great to my leg, voice, seat, reins; everything! I can't describe how the feel is to ride such a willing, forward, beautiful horse. If the price I have to pay to do it is an occasional spook or bad behavior, then so be it! He is amazing! When someone he does not like though (He is very picky about his people!) is riding him, he will either A) Curl up behind the bit. B) Start to get very fast. C) Pace around so they can not mount him, or D) Do something else crazy! 

     Well that pretty much sums up Udex's personality under saddle! I am writing a tad too much for one entry however! So next entry I promise to write about Udex when he is not under saddle, but actually his amazing horsenality! I look forward to tomorrows entry because I get to share with you his amazing, kind, loving, gentle self! (-: