Lights, Camera, Action!

As you read in my last post, Saga City Productions came on Sunday to film Lucky Horse and Falah and I with it!  The day started with me freaking out over knowing what to say (They kindly sent some of the questions ahead) and repeating the answers to anyone who would listen as I gave Falah the spa treatment to make him beautiful.  I arrived at 12 and by 1:30 had Falah shiny and sparkling clean.  The filming ran a little behind schedule so I got to peek in on Nicole (another volunteer) talk about the rescue along with some general horsey facts for the kids that will be watching.  I slipped away during a break in the filming and warmed up Falah in the pony ring.  He did great but it took me a little while to calm him down when the tarp “jumped up and attacked him.”

Then it was my turn!  Before we could really start, a pony got loose in the big outdoor ring, and all the horses went crazy which of course made Falah a bit crazy.  I had to keep his mind on me and circle him making sure he didn’t come in.  After the excitement died down we started filming.  We started with a little run through a few of the games and Addison (the 12 year old host of the filler) threw the ball back and forth with me over Falah.  She even accidentally hit Falah with it and he didn’t flinch a bit!!  Then I had the interview questions which took a while because planes and cars kept going by which messed with the sound.  But we got through it and ended the filming except one part.

Addy got on Falah bareback and did the ending section of filming!  Even though Falah was only standing this is a huge accomplishment to have a 12 year old girl on his back and him not get snarky at all!!  It probably helped that his only association with Addy was the treats she had given him earlier but it still made me proud to see him looking like an old nag with a new girl on his back!  Check them out!  They both look very happy!

Everyone down to the sound and camera man were extremely nice and supportive throughout the whole process.  Bonnie (the one to contact Jen) said we probably made Addy’s day by letting her sit on Falah which I liked because Addy was really nice too.  She must have wished me Happy Birthday at least 4 times and Falah liked her too!  So Thank you Saga City Productions, Addy, Bonnie and the whole crew so much for coming out and giving Falah and I the chance to spread awareness about rescue horses!

Here’s a shot of Addy, Jen, Falah and I after filming!  Thanks guys!

P.S-  They didn’t actually say “action” but I thought the title was catchy 😛

Form, Fiber, and Falah

FORM, FIBER & FALAH: Now you can help support Lucky Horse Equine Rescue and give your walls a burst of color, texture and original artisan-crafted chic. Local textile artist Laima Whitty, (mother of Aileen, Falah’s talented young trainer-in-training), is just as creative at fundraising as she is at creating her art! Her current exhibition is at the Ashland Public Library’s “Form and Fiber” Art Show. Rather than charging a purchase price, Laima is generously foregoing any proceeds for herself and instead asking art appreciators to make a tax-deductible donation to LHER that is equivalent to the value of their selection(s).* The donations from Laima’s one-of-a-kind hand-quilted fiber wall art will help support “Falah,” one of LHER’s off-track thoroughbreds, continue the amazing progress we’ve all witnessed in LHER’s Natural Horsemanship classes and in Aileen’s Blog — https://freefalah.wordpress.com/. Choose from the ten fabulous pieces shown in our “Form & Fiber..and Falah” photo album. Prepare to be dazzled by the patterns, textures and sizes for everyone’s taste and space.
*Any of the ten pieces by Laima Whitty (note: does not include other participating artists’ pieces) can be had at no charge ($0.00) in return for a tax-deductable donation (under Section170 of the Internal Revenue Code), of the stated amount, to Lucky Horse Equine Rescue, a 501C3 non-profit organization. For more details, email Laima at a_lwhitty@yahoo.com.

So any proceeds from the 10 pieces will go to Falah!  Thank you to Mrs. Noodle for writing all of the information and putting it together!

Tough Love

We’ve started a new “tough love” philosophy with Falah.  He can no longer get away with minimal efforts like a tiny trot and then get a break.  So now when I’m on Falah and trotting, even if he trots a few steps he doesn’t get a break until I tell him too.  When we first started this, he did tiny hops and stopped every few seconds, but eventually he learned that it’s much easier for him to keep going rather than I annoy him by making him trot over and over.  We’re still working on it, but this week I have a different set of tasks to do; Jenifer got in contact with Saga City Productions who are coming out on Sunday to interview/film Falah and I for a possible filler that would be aired on PBS!  So in preparation I’m perfecting all of Falah’s fancier stunts like work with the ball and tarp, me getting on bareback and friendly game from sitting on him, backing on the “finger” stage as well as circling game while sitting and anything I can fit in.  He also needs some special grooming like pulling his mane which he hates but is a good friendly game, and breaking out the clippers to shave his whiskers and sharpen up his face a bit.

Here’s a video of a trot and canter session from this week.  Coming soon will be “Form, Fiber and Falah” a new fundraiser that features my Mom’s (Laima Whitty’s) fiber art that is for “sale” and all money made from these pieces will go to Falah!  Details to come soon!!

 

Keeping pace

It’s been a while since my last post, sorry!  School work is staring to catch up to me, but all my projects are done now, so you can expect lots of pictures and videos this week.  To start off, here’s a video of the Circling Game over a pole.  This goes with what Falah and I have been doing with changing pace within gaits from slow to extended.  In the video, you can hear Jen counting out how many strides Falah takes in one whole circle that also has him going over the pole in one of his strides; rather than he has to take one tiny, chippy stride right before or have long stride to make it over the jump. (to see a too short stride, go to 0:23 and 1:11 in the video, to see a long stride go to 1:58 in video)  This gets both of our paces consistent and also helps m with counting strides before jumps.  If I can count 3 or 4 strides out from the jump, I can make the decision then whether my pace needs to change to make the jump appear smooth.

Today I’ll be going to the barn and working on the Circling Game, as well as a few new things from last night’s Natural Horsemanship class after work.  I have a new Porcupine Game which is backing Falah by pulling on his tail.  We are already doing a few steps at a time!  Squeeze Game is now over a flower box, and Yo-yo Game is backing Falah onto a tarp!  At first he was a little unsure of the taro because it’s been a while since we worked with it and also because if he’s backing onto it, he can only see it out of the corner of the eye so all he hears in crackling!  By the end he was pawing at the tarp and scrunching it up without fear.

I will also hop on and practice my turns, stops, and a few trots.  The Friendly Game this week is major work on rubbing Falah’s stomach and hindquarters.  He still hates it, but is getting much better; he barely grinds his teeth when I do up the girth now!

HUGE Thank you!

I just wanted to take a minute to thank Denise, Joe, and Kelly who generously donated $500 to the Falah Fund with the help of The Pawsitive Dog training facility in Boston!!  WOW!  Thank you so, so much for this kind donation that will allow Falah and I to continue our partnership!  This donation will be a big aid in Falah’s rehabilitation and his future training.  Thank you!!

To see how The Pawsitive Dog is giving back to the community by helping Falah and other animals in need, check out this link!

http://thepawsitivedog.com/_dogmatching.htm