This evening I have a family dinner, so I’m in a bit of a rush. Looking back, I realize this is the third time in recent weeks I’ve made this same mistake. In my rush to get into arena, I hurry Xena through our undemanding greeting, which I now see is one of the most important elements for her. Just like the other times, my rushing causes her to be somewhat nervous, less confident.
What We Did Today
4:15 to 5:10 p.m. = 55 minutesCounting the Minutes
- We do a quick run-through of the seven games while walking around the arena, and playing a bit of the weave pattern I’ve set-up with 4 sand pails.
- Parallel Walking Game
We play along the center line, I alternate from walking to jogging, while she walks parallel to me. A few passes later, Xena trots while I jog. She’s becoming very calm and controlled with me on her left side, and she stays on a straight line. The right side is better than yesterday, but our straight line quickly turns into a circle, although without the panicked trotting. We’re making steady progress!
- Circling Game℠ with an Obstacle/Squeeze
I reposition the 4 sandpails into two pairs, approximately 2 -1/2 feet apart, so that I can send her on an 18′ circle, passing through the squeeze. We begin with a close-range circle, so that she can test the pattern, and then expand to the full 18′. Xena is very focused and does really well in both directions. She’s becoming quite confident at obstacle games.
- Liberty
We played at liberty for a few minutes, just walking around, then a close-range Circling Game℠ and Friendly Game℠ as a way to end our play session on a calm, quiet note.
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