Teddy was amazing in cross country again today. We tried several new jumps and he was very brave going over them. I still feel a little nervous about cantering over a jump and landing on the down hill while cantering away. He is so heavy on the forehand that I am worried he will torpedo down the hill. But the next step in our training is to get him on his haunches so he is controlled and balanced in a down hill approach to a jump and on the landing. I also had a very sweet trail ride with Toby.

All the training and hard work over the last four years is really becoming apparent. He was incredible today. We were tuned into each other and rode the course effortlessly.

It came to my attention from my accountant that I need to charge GST to Canadian clients (7%). US clients are charged 0%. In order to differentiate between US and Canadian clients, I needed to create two different websites. Katherinebozzi.com is for US clients and katherinebozzi.ca if for Canadian clients. This website will charge US dollars to US clients. This will save you conversion fees from US to Canadian currency. However, the US dollar is strong right now. To compensate you for the change, the $45 minute Varied Consultation is on sale.  This covers any topic: lost animals, health challenges, behavioral challenges, end of life and deceased.

The boys got their teeth floated this week. It had been about 18 months for Teddy. He had a hook on the  lower left side. He will be done again in 12 months to ensure hooks do not develop again. As horses grind their teeth from side to side, this can create waves and/or sharp hooks in their teeth. This can make it uncomfortable for them to eat and create ulcers on their cheeks. Their teeth grow continuously so it's important to have regular floats.

Toby had his teeth floated about 12 months ago. The vet found he had waves in his teeth, so it was recommend he have another float sooner than later. His teeth looked great with no waives or hooks. It is worthwhile to be proactive with maintenance!

The horses are give an injection to make them sleepy and then their heads are put in a harness and raised up. The vet pries open their mouths and grinds down the teeth with a Dremel like tool so their teeth are flat, even and symmetrical.

After recently completing my taxes this year, it has come to my attention that I need to start charging GST. It will be 7% for Canadians and 0% for Americans. To be able to do this, I am creating a new website, katherinebozzi.ca for Canadian clients (katherinebozzi.com will remain for American clients). I wanted to give you a heads up so your not surprised or confused by the change. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Benjamin is most likely a coon-hound/shepherd cross. When we adopted him 7 years ago, he was 1 year old, very underweight, sweet and docile. After a few months we had nursed him back to health. He has been demonstrating he amazing athletic ability, strength, bravery, adventurism and dedication to fetching and swimming ever since. This clip says it all!

Toby turned 8 years old on May 15. I can't believe I have had him for half his life. We had a great lesson on Wednesday. We worked on settling him in the new arena across the street. He remembered that the barrel by the tree was scary last week because of moving shadows. So my coach put another barrel in the arena and he forgot to be scared! This gave him a new object to focus his attention on. He is very stiff and unbalanced in the canter on the right rein so we practiced that a lot. We must of done over 30 - 20 meter circles on the right reign. This allowed him to find his rhythm and balance. On the part of the circle going towards home he would speed up and on the part going away from home he would slow down. So I need to be proactive and half halt him on the fast part of the circle and squeeze on the slow part. This will help him achieve a steady rhythm and find his balance.

A few weeks ago, Toby threw his back out so I gave him some time off and a chiropractic treatment along with some nice massages with a lacrosse ball! He has been ridden lightly this week by my daughter and myself, so he seemed ready for a lesson, and I wanted my coach to look at him. We worked on getting him counter bent on the right rein to establish connection with the left outside rein. My left rein tends to be weaker and so this technique really helps both of us establish connection and collection. My coach took some surprise footage for me so here it is!

I am so happy my coach is allowed to teach again. Social distancing is really not an issue when it comes to riding because horses need so much space anyway. It has been fun working with Teddy on my own and then great to get the feedback yesterday on where we need to keep improving. We are doing well in our training and continue to push and improve in our balance work in canter. I learned a great tip to get Teddy moving. Put him into canter every time he slows down, to get him in front of my leg. Otherwise I am just nagging him with my leg and he becomes dull to my aids. I continue to work on keeping my shoulders level and using a kick instead of a prop with my leg when he falls to the right in the canter. This will really help my position. I'm also feeling the effects of trying to prop up 1200 pounds with my right side! It's time to use my aids more effectively so my body doesn't bare the brunt. He is also getting rounder and more collected in the trot which is a huge improvement!

Young Toby seems to have thrown his back out last week-end. He was very lame and could barely trot on the left rein last Monday. He has been improving everyday. I put the saddle on him a couple of days ago, but he was telling me "No, mom, I'm not ready to be ridden yet." I told him I understood and I want to see him move so I can assess him. He is moving very well but still slightly bracing in the hind end. Yesterday, when I went to get him, he was lying down and showing no interest in getting up. I asked him if he wanted a massage from his pole to the tip of his tail. He indicated yes and really enjoyed himself. He started farting which was a good sign of how relaxed he was.

Today, I did canter work with Teddy. Teddy and I have been doing a lot of canter work as that is the area we both need to improve on. I need to focus on not being counter bent with my shoulders on the right rein. I am pinning my right knee against the saddle to keep him from falling in. I try to be relaxed with my legs and leg yield him out rather than using my leg as a post.  I also work on swinging my hips to go with the movement. It is very difficult to sit his canter sometimes which is why we need to do it so much. The more balanced and strong he becomes in his core then the more balanced I will be too. We are learning and growing together. It is a beautiful journey and I am so grateful for these two sweet boys in my life.