Carrie S worked alongside Brandy in the November Joel Conner clinic, and had the following to say about their time together:
“I participated in the November Joel Conner clinic in the groundwork class with Miss Brandy Snap. This beautiful and kind mare has made stunning progress over the three clinics we participated in this year. When we started out in March, she leaned on the lead rope, was focused on everything but me, and had very little bend. Now she is responsive to lighter pressure, bending her body when asked, developing a soft feel, and staying focused on the work at hand. She moves her hindquarters easily and we are now working on front quarters. The learning edge right now is backing up when you are facing her followed by pivoting on her back end and crossing over on the front end. I was able to get a step or two and we are working on quicker response, lighter pressure, and a few more steps until she can pivot all the way around.
Brandy does best when she is in a quiet location such as the back end of the arena. When we moved to the front near the spectators, speaker, gate, and Joel Conner, it was challenging to keep her focused. We will work more with that at the next clinic. The other major project for her is getting her to the point where she can tie safely without pulling back. Joel and Terry are working with us to make sure she’s ready for tying up before we attempt it. Brandy is such a lovely mare and a beautiful teacher to help build horsemanship skills.”
