Lanie has gotten less resistant to the lead line concept since this was taken last summer. It's a good thing, because she's also gotten larger and stronger. Because I want to protect Micah's investment and her self, I work with Lanie three or four times a week. Work being a loosely applied term here. Terry has gone with me, too, some. Neither one of us is temperamentally inclined to be strict. About ten days ago, Lanie was particularly excited, pretty much running circles around Terry, because she didn't want to be separated from Sophie. As he was leading her out of the barn, trying to calm her down with a soothing voice and patting her, Courtney stopped to chat with us. She reached over and grabbed a "pressure point," specifically a muscle in Lanie's chest that, when grabbed, immediately gets her attention. She
immediately stopped in her tracks. It was miraculous. We stood there and talked about ten minutes and every time Lanie moved, Courtney did it again. It only took a few times before all she had to do was touch Lanie on the chest and she'd snap to attention. A few days later, Courtney gave me a private lesson in horse domination and, since then, Lanie's and my little training sessions have become much better. It can still be unnerving when she gets excited and sometimes I'm afraid my nervousness is being transmitted up the lead line straight to her brain, informing her of what a scaredy-cat I am, but for the most part, all's well.
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