Post by Deleted on Aug 30, 2007 8:37:00 GMT 1
Ok, folks, hankies at the ready....
I spent a bit of time in the field with Zorelle yesterday and came to the conclusion that I'd reach the edge of her personal space. That was good, of course, but I was getting the feeling that I could probably work for days and get no further. So, it was time to press ahead again.
I had to wait till the evening for George to be with me, when I could take her in the pen and work there. Today would be the day that I would touch her back. I spent a little time settling her, then worked to see how far she would let me touch her head. The answer was end of her nose, but no futher. Even with the clip, it was soon clear that arm's length would be the closest she'd allow me that way.
I then tried reaching out to her shoulder with my hand. Again, she was very unhappy about it, more that I wanted her to be. Throughout all of this, I have a feeling of how much pressure is acceptable. I need her to feel that it's not what she'd choose but that she can do it really. So, I had to look around for a way to make this ok for her.
Remembering back to her reaction with or without the pole, I wondered if she would be any happier if I reached out with the coil of line. And, what do you know, she was. For some reason, a hand holding something is less threatening to her than a hand on its own. She backed away a few time, at which point I kept the pressure on till she turned back to me, but in the end she said ok.
It's interesting that, as I took the pressure off, she did swing her quarters towards me a bit, but it only took a little pressure back on to persuade her to stand still again. I did this a bit more - during which she did have a moment of upset - but then by about 3 minutes later, she was much more relaxed
Sorry about me blocking the view! George didn't want to move too much and ruin our mutual concentration. You can still see, though, how much more accepting she is in such a short space of time. No, she'd probably rather not have me rubbing her withers (yes, that's what I was doing!), but actually, it doesn't hurt!
The really interesting bit was right at the end. I stopped working after that last clip - it was so good you had to reward it properly - and opened the pen to let her out. She walked out, again quite calmly, then turn to us as if to say "And, where's the pain then? Is that all?"
(You can see the state of that foot a bit on that photo).
We'll do another session in the pen this evening, during which I really hope she'll have registered that having me touch her isn't as bad as she'd feared.
I couldn't sleep last night. I was so alive after that, it was just completely beautiful.
I spent a bit of time in the field with Zorelle yesterday and came to the conclusion that I'd reach the edge of her personal space. That was good, of course, but I was getting the feeling that I could probably work for days and get no further. So, it was time to press ahead again.
I had to wait till the evening for George to be with me, when I could take her in the pen and work there. Today would be the day that I would touch her back. I spent a little time settling her, then worked to see how far she would let me touch her head. The answer was end of her nose, but no futher. Even with the clip, it was soon clear that arm's length would be the closest she'd allow me that way.
I then tried reaching out to her shoulder with my hand. Again, she was very unhappy about it, more that I wanted her to be. Throughout all of this, I have a feeling of how much pressure is acceptable. I need her to feel that it's not what she'd choose but that she can do it really. So, I had to look around for a way to make this ok for her.
Remembering back to her reaction with or without the pole, I wondered if she would be any happier if I reached out with the coil of line. And, what do you know, she was. For some reason, a hand holding something is less threatening to her than a hand on its own. She backed away a few time, at which point I kept the pressure on till she turned back to me, but in the end she said ok.
It's interesting that, as I took the pressure off, she did swing her quarters towards me a bit, but it only took a little pressure back on to persuade her to stand still again. I did this a bit more - during which she did have a moment of upset - but then by about 3 minutes later, she was much more relaxed
Sorry about me blocking the view! George didn't want to move too much and ruin our mutual concentration. You can still see, though, how much more accepting she is in such a short space of time. No, she'd probably rather not have me rubbing her withers (yes, that's what I was doing!), but actually, it doesn't hurt!
The really interesting bit was right at the end. I stopped working after that last clip - it was so good you had to reward it properly - and opened the pen to let her out. She walked out, again quite calmly, then turn to us as if to say "And, where's the pain then? Is that all?"
(You can see the state of that foot a bit on that photo).
We'll do another session in the pen this evening, during which I really hope she'll have registered that having me touch her isn't as bad as she'd feared.
I couldn't sleep last night. I was so alive after that, it was just completely beautiful.