Its working....

Well, in my last post I told you I as going to to try some ground work to work on his gaiting. I did two days of just ground work in my pasture. The third day, I took him to our public arena. Wouldn't you know, he was a gaiting fool. I took him on a trail ride. He was trotting and pushing thru my seat and hands again. So,I thought a bout it. I really didn't want to use a bit to try and correct a problem like this. I gave it some thought, and I ordered him a pelham bit. that way, I had a snaffle rein, and a SLIGHT leverage rein. Back to the arena we went, just so he could get used to the mouthpiece. He continued to gait. Then, a trail ride......Well, he offered gait from the git-go. Not fast, or strong or super consistently long, but, it was gait instead of trot. He tried to start pushing thru my seat, then hands. I put the second rein on to the curb part of the bit. He did NOT like that, and thought about launching me to the moon....but then he settled down. I took the curb rein off and went to just the snaffle rein.....We went 6 miles of almost all gaiting. Yahoo! I think I had taught him to gait in the arena, and that on the trail, he should trot. Amazing what we teach them and don't even realize what we have done....
We went out again today on the trail. He is offering almost nothing but gait. Again, it isn't very fast, or strong, but I think he is getting the idea that THAt is what I want.
This weekend, Sherrie and I are riding Saturday and Sunday.......This could be interesting!