The different half an inch can make

Finally getting time to sit down and blog! My life has been a little insane, with the semester coming to a close and finals approaching.

My little horse has been very good since I have been back from Thanksgiving break. However, we have had a small problem (since before Thanksgiving, but more noticeably after) with her resisting contact. Normally, I just hold the outside rein and supple the inside, and boom, headset and back engaged. But lately, especially to the left, I'd ask for her to get her nose out of the sky and she'd cock her head at a funny angle and become a giraffe. She'd gradually work out of it, but it was irritating to get her there.

My first thought was that something was up with her teeth, but the equine dentist had seen her relatively recently and she hadn't been showing any issues eating or anything. The barn manager took a peek and said her teeth looked fine.

Okay, well maybe it is just winter attitude. Beauty is prone to getting Winter Grumpies, where she is resistant and grumpy for the first few minutes of the ride, until she gets warmed up and her head in the game.

Well, on Monday, as I put her bridle on, I noticed that the leather had stretched a little (new bridle, bought in July) and the bit was a little low in her mouth. So I put it up a hole on each side, just to see if it would make a difference.

And just like that, no more drama llama contact problems! The bit must have been a little low in her mouth and maybe bumping against her teeth or just in an uncomfortable spot. As soon as I fixed it, she was right back to normal. She was still resistant at first, because she's a perpetual grump, but once warmed up, she gave me some of the best dressage work in a while!!

She's been doing SO well lately, I really feel like we are making progress in dressage, especially with the canter (cantering like a real pony, WHAAAAT?). I am so bummed that in a week, I will be leaving for six weeks (studying abroad in Peru) and some of our work might be lost. A friend will be coming to lunge her and give her attention a couple times a week, but she probably will not be riding. So at least B will get some love and exercise, and I hope all our work doesn't go down the drain.... :/