Zelly has a pretty big brace in her front quarters. So much so, that when we started riding her, she would almost rear when asked to reach her front foot out and back. She was so stuck, she felt it was impossible to unweight her front end. On Saturday of the clinic, Joel rode her in the afternoon and worked on this move specifically. In a matter of half an hour, Zelly was reaching and coming across better than some of the horses in the riding class! This change happened so quickly it make me completely reconsider what I’d previously thought about a horses ability to change. I’m so impressed by this mare, I can’t wait to keep growing and learning from her. It seems to me that Zelly has been waiting her whole life for someone to understand how brilliant and capable she really is and she seems to really want to work when given the credit she deserves. I’m honored and humbled to get the opportunity to empower this horse to be what she’s always wanted to be.”
March Joel Conner Clinic Report: Zelly
Kaya M brought Zelly into the groundwork portion of the March Joel Conner clinic, and had the following to say about her experience there as well as her observations of Zelly under saddle:
“They say that being around smart people makes you smarter and I think that must also apply to horses. This horse is so smart! Just being around her shows me how I need to be a better horseman and I learned so much from how quickly she learned during the March clinic. Zelly really tested (and continues to test) my abilities to be consistent and efficient because she picks things up so quickly. Occasionally she’ll get a grouchy attitude at my ineptitude to communicate effectively with her, but as I get better, her expression does too.
