Just When You Think It's Never Gonna Happen...

 It happened. I have been working with Rio and the stick/glove for a few weeks now. She has gotten comfortable with the glove petting her all over her right side including the side of her face. So last Friday as I was petting her with the stick/glove I made a decision. A decision that could have gone bad or it would go good. But I was going to try it. I hold the back end of the stick in my right hand and my left hand higher up on the stick closer to the glove. As I was petting Rio with the stick glove, I slowly started sliding my left hand up the stick closer to the glove. First my hand was about 3 feet away from the glove, then 2 feet, then 1 foot, then 6" until I had my hand right on top of the glove. So basically my hand was on the glove as I was petting Rio. Then I slid a couple fingers off the glove and onto Rio's wither. Then I slid my hand off of the glove onto Rio and petted her with my hand, as well as still petting her with the glove, working the stick with just my right hand. I eventually stopped petting her with the stick/glove and left it laying on her back while I continued petting her with my hand. I petted her wither and her shoulder. Not only once, but probably close to a hundred times. And she allowed me to do it. She wasn't 100% comfortable, but she didn't run away from me either. I was so excited I had to call my OH and tell him that I got to pet Rio. He didn't believe me. So I told him that when he got home from work we would go out there and I would prove it to him. 


And prove it to him I did. All pictures taken with my OH's old school phone that takes terrible pictures! The next 3 pictures were taken on Friday, Touching Lesson #2.

Working my hand up the stick.

At one point in the lesson, my OH came up behind me and reached his hand out and was able to pet Rio while I was petting her. I was actually surprised that Rio allowed that, not because it was my OH, but because she was positioned in a way that she could have felt trapped and if she felt trapped her only escape route was right over the top of us. I always try to be safety conscious when working with Rio, even though she has never tried anything to hurt me, but her reactions are so quick she could easily run me over trying to flee the situation.

Petting Rio's wither.

I continued to pet her on the wither, shoulder and a little way up her neck. 

Another view of petting Rio's wither.

I gave Rio 2 days off then I went out on Monday for Touching Lesson #3. She was more relaxed and I was even able to put my stick/glove down and go back to her and pet her without the crutch of the stick/glove. She was letting me pet her all the way up her neck and on her cheek. She actually became so relaxed that I thought she was going to fall asleep. So when my OH got home from work that day, I did Touching Lesson #4 so he could see where I was at.

Petting Rio on her neck.

One of my big goals is to start working on Rio's left side. She has NEVER allowed me close to her left side and always positions herself with her right side to me. So that is why I have been doing all my work on the right. If she is more comfortable with that, then that is where I will be. But I know eventually she has to get comfortable with me on the left side. So I finally got some work done on the left side. She did not like it at first, which I knew this would be how she would react. But she stopped and I was able to get my stick/glove on her left side and pet her with it.

Touching Rio for 1st time with stick/glove on her left side.

She allowed me to pet her pretty much all over and I kept my body further away then I do on the right side. If I had stepped in any closer on this side, she would flee. It will be awhile before I can actually pet this side with my hand. And it might even take me longer to get to that point on this side, it took about 2 1/2  weeks to start petting her with my hand after I started the stick/glove on the right side, so it very well could take 4 weeks for me to be able to get my hand on her left side. But she could surprise me!

I was able to pet her up her neck, shoulder, wither, back and butt.

I have also been handling her lead rope with the stick/glove. I move the lead rope around, pull on it and put the glove up on the snap. I want her to get comfortable with the lead rope being handled. But I also want to get the lead rope off of her. It is soaked in water and mud and the thing weighs a ton.

Handling the lead rope with the stick/glove.

Yesterday I did Touching Lesson #4. I am now able to pet the whole right side of her face, even under her eye and down on her muzzle. I was able to put my hand on the lead rope snap. And then I did something stupid. I was going to wait another week or 2 to let her get more comfortable with my hand by her face and handling the lead rope with the stick/glove, but she was letting me touch the snap of the lead rope so I thought I could try to take it off. I opened the snap and I had to move it away from me to get the snap off the halter ring. She moved her head to the left which caused the snap to hit the halter ring and it made a noise and she took off. With the lead rope still on. And then she wasn't too happy about me getting too close to her again. But I got her calmed back down and was able to pet her again, just not as close to her face as before. So now I need to get her back. I think I lost a little bit of trust there.

But that's okay. I will get it back. I have just been so happy that I finally have MY hand on Rio! I still have a long way to go and I know we will take many steps forward, as well as many steps backwards. It's all part of the process of gentling a wild Mustang!!